Inuyasha: Interspecies Outreach Educational Program
by LizzieLovett2326
Summary: Kagome Higurashi enrolls in the Interspecies Outreach Education Program, which places her in the heart of the Floating City, or Youkai Sector. Here she begins to unravel the truth behind her father's death, and her own true nature is revealed.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Interspecies Outreach Educational Program**

Kagome Higurashi's hand scribbled furiously across the test booklet. Her pencil dug into the paper, leaving deep groves of dark graphite in its place. The grooves formed characters, which formed words, which formed sentences and represented Kagome's quick moving thoughts. The thoughts raced ahead faster than her hand could take them down, and her hand tripped over a faulty groove of graphite which would, if left unattended, make her sentence nonsensical. Kagome dropped her pencil onto her book and grabbed her eraser. She ground the little pink bar of rubber into the paper until the mistakenly written character was mostly faded. Then she picked up her pencil and was off again. She turned the page of her booklet, which crinkled against the movement. Kagome then started in on the next page. It was already marred by indentations from her heavy-handed writing.

The students sitting around Kagome were well used to the furious energy she expended during test-taking. The cloud of intensity wafted slowly outward from her, and was certainly at first distracting. Perhaps even a little annoying. But after a full semester of sitting around that energy, her seat neighbors had learned to tune it out. Yuki, one of Kagome's friends, sat beside her and watched as Kagome hunched further over the desk and wrote even faster. Her eyes, six inches away from the paper, were blind to her surroundings. Yuki looked down to her own paper and repressed a sigh. She had finished her essay two minutes ago, but it felt weak compared to what Kagome was writing next to her. She glanced at Kagome from the corner of her eye, trying to stifle her jealousy. All the while, Kagome's pencil scraped out an unsteady beat beside her. It was the loudest sound in the room.

Kagome finished her essay just as the teacher called time. She threw herself back from the booklet, and the awareness of her surroundings came flooding back to her. Her head spun for a moment with the sudden motion, and when she regained her composure the other students were already gathering their things and lining up to turn in their essays. Kagome followed suit, catching up to Yuki in the line. She rolled her wrist and flexed her fingers, now feeling the toll of her heavy handed writing.

"How'd you do?" Yuki asked. Kagome shrugged.

"Alright," she said, "I barely finished. How about you?" Yuki shook her head.

"I swear Kagome, if you did _alright_ , I don't even want to know my grade," she said.

"That's not true!" Kagome insisted.

"No, no," Yuki said as she handed in her paper, "It's true. But you can have writing, I'll stick with my math scores." Kagome handed in her paper and followed Yuki back to their seats. Kagome groaned.

"I hate math," she said, "It's all yours."

This test was in Kagome's last class of the day, which meant she went straight from the classroom to her club's meeting room. Kagome was on the school newspaper—or, to be more precise, she was editor of the school newspaper. She was also the youngest editor in the history of the newspaper. The spot usually went to third year students, the seniors, who had worked their way up from coffee-fetcher to occasional writer to columnist. Kagome had procured a column at the end of her first semester at the paper, and had been voted in by her classmates as editor at the beginning of her second year.

The newspaper staff had already arrived by the time Kagome reached the room where they met. Laptops were open, notebooks at the ready, and Akane Tsukino stood by the door with Kagome's cup of hot coffee in hand. Akane handed the cup to Kagome as she walked in the door, then followed Kagome to her desk, speaking quickly. Kagome put her backpack down and pulled out her laptop.

"We haven't heard back from any of the teachers about the dress code piece," Akane said, "but another second year was written up for unbuttoning her top two buttons and rolling up her sleeves. Minami went to the game on Saturday, but it got rained out so we've got no new sports story. Also, Shiro's mad because you didn't put his story on the first page last week. Also, he's coming in to see you today."

"When?" Kagome asked.

"Now," Akane answered, pointing. Kagome looked up. Shiro Himura, a third year student who had almost been editor, was stomping up to her. Kagome took a quick sip of her coffee, hoping the caffeine would fortify her in the face of Hothead Himura's wrath.

"Higurashi, what the hell?" he said, loudly. Other students around the room looked up in shock.

"Hold on Himura," Kagome said.

"But—" Shiro started to say, but Kagome cut him off, talking to Akane.

"Akane, go over to the teacher's lounge and don't leave until someone agrees to comment on the dress code issue," she said. Akane turned to leave, but Kagome stopped her.

"And tell Minami to go see what the tennis club's doing, we haven't written about them in awhile. If there's nothing interesting, pick another club and hop to it. We've got a paper to get out tomorrow." Akane nodded, and ran over to Minami's desk. Kagome now turned to Shiro.

"Yes, Himura?" she asked. He crossed his arms.

"Why didn't my story make front page last week? You said it was good," he said, loudly.

"Because," Kagome answered, "Koizumi's was better written and more relevant." Shiro's face turned red and he sent a glare towards Nao Koizumi. She shrunk down in her seat, just barely peeking over the top of her laptop at the argument.

"Hey, don't be mad at her," Kagome said, "Write me something worthy of the front page, and you'll be on the front page. Got that, Himura?"

"What does 'worthy of the front page' mean?" Shiro asked, clearly seething.

"It means better than everyone else's work. And you're not going to do that by glaring at second years and yelling at me," Kagome said. Shiro, who seemed to be trying his hardest not to pout, turned in a huff and walked back to his desk. Kagome rolled her eyes. She hated babysitting writers.

By the end of the club meeting, the week's edition of the paper was miraculously ready to print. Kagome sent Akane off to the printers with the master file, then went home. It was a ten minute walk from the school back to her house, but Kagome was exhausted, it was too hot outside, and the short walk seemed like forever. Beneath her backpack she felt her shirt stick to the sweat of her back.

She finally made it home to the local shrine that she and her family operated. They had a house out back, behind the old religious buildings. Kagome lived there with her grandfather, mother, and brother, Souta. She walked in through the kitchen door, calling out:

"Mama! I'm home!"

A faint noise came from upstairs.

"What?" Kagome yelled. The noise—her mom's voice, saying distant and incomprehensible words—repeated itself.

"What?" Kagome yelled again, making her way to the stairs and up towards wherever her mother was. Her mom appeared at the doorway to her grandfather's room.

"Welcome home," her mom said, for the third time. Kagome smiled.

"Thanks, mama," she said.

"How was school? Did your test go well?" her mom asked. Kagome nodded.

"Yes, it went fine," she said, "And we got the newspaper out on time so no disaster there."  
"Good," her mom said. Kagome walked into her room, dropping her backpack on the floor. She was about to pull off her sweaty shirt, when she saw a letter sitting on her desk. She froze. Her mom hovered behind her, silent.

"Mama, is that what I think it is?" Kagome asked. She looked to her mom, who was nodding. Kagome felt nerves fill her like water in a glass. Starting in her feet, the tingling filled up her body and the blank noise in her head became higher and higher pitched. She turned on the light and picked up the letter. It was encased in a plain white envelope, with her name stamped on a label and stuck on the front. The return address printed on the envelope was for The Amity School in the Youkai Sector. A small logo was printed beside it, of a globe in red and blue. Gently, Kagome ripped open the envelope and pulled out the letter. With one last glance to her mom, she opened it up and began to read silently.

Dear Kagome Higurashi,

Congratulations on your acceptance into the Interspecies Outreach Educational Program. We were impressed by the strength of your application, and look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to our community of learners.

Starting this spring you will attend the newly integrated high school, The Amity School, in the Youkai Sector. During the school week you will stay in one of our on-campus dormitories in a section of human housing with an assigned roommate. On the weekends there will be a train available to leave the Youkai Sector and visit home. You will receive your housing assignment upon arriving at orientation, but if you have any questions concerning the housing conditions please email h_housing .

You are to report for orientation on May 31 in Taisho Auditorium. Here you will be given your housing assignment, will choose your class schedule, and will get to know your fellow students before classes start on April 1. Enclosed is a ticket for the nearest train station with available transport to the Youkai Sector. You will ride in a private car with other human Outreach students, and a representative of the Youkai-Human Relations Committee will meet you at the receiving station to transport you to The Amity School. Two human police officers will accompany you on the train, so please do not be perturbed by these security measures. While we do not expect any risk to students, the officers are a necessary measure to ensure the safety of travel. Within the week you will receive an email with more details about schedule and class options, but please direct any questions to orientation .

Once again, congratulations! We welcome you to the Interspecies Outreach Educational Program with open arms. It is with high hopes that we embark on this journey to bring together our demon and human communities that have remained separate for so long. As a willing learner and ambassador of friendship, you too play a pivotal role in this journey.

Sincerely yours,

 _Mr. Myoga_

Co-Councilman of Youkai-Human Relations

Former Director of Voluntary Education, Youkai Sector

Headmaster of The Amity School

"What does it say?" Kagome's mother asked. Kagome looked up to her, her blank expression of shock turning into a wide smile.

"I'm in!" she said.

"Oh my god," her mom said, quietly. Kagome nodded. Souta, her ten year old brother, poked his head out of his room.

"What's going on?" he asked. Kagome ran over to him and engulfed him in a hug, picking him up off the ground and swinging him around.

"I got in!" she said. Souta squirmed out of her grasp.

"To that demon school?" he asked.

"Yes, I got into the demon school!" Kagome shouted. She turned to her mother, who was standing behind her and smiling.

"This is great, mama," Kagome said. Her mom nodded, but the muscles around her eyes were tense and her fingers knotted together in front of her. Kagome, still holding the letter, felt her elation begin to subside.

"This is great, right?" she asked.

"Oh, honey, of course it's great. It's spectacular!" her mom said, pulling her into a hug. Kagome leaned back, looking at her mother's tense face.

"Are you okay, mama?" she asked. Her mother nodded.

"Just worried about you," she said, then smiled, "But proud of you, too." But clearly worried.

"I'll be fine," Kagome said firmly, "They've got top security at this place—they've even got police officers on the train with us." It wasn't the train ride her mom was worried about, though. It was the demons Kagome would be attending class with. And this wasn't hyperbole, these were literal demons—youkai. They were supernaturally strong and fast, with abilities the human community could only speculate. Her daughter would now be alongside them, powerless. Mrs. Higurashi tried to swallow her worry, if only to keep from dampening her daughter's excitement. But Kagome was already running downstairs and outside to find her grandfather and tell him the news.

"So Kagome's going to school with monsters?" Souta asked. Mrs. Higurashi looked at him in shock.

"We don't use that word to describe other people, Souta," she scolded, "Demons are not monsters." Souta seemed skeptical.

"Yeah, mom," he said, "But it's still weird."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: The Boy in the Tree**

"You're WHAT?" Yuki asked. She, Eri, and Ayumi sat across from Kagome in a cafe between the Higurashi shrine and school. Eri and Ayumi were Kagome's other two best friends. The four girls were, as many of the students in the area, regular customers. Several other patrons looked to their table upon hearing Yuki's incredulous exclamation. Kagome sat, alone, on her side of the booth. Her hands knitted together on the tabletop, and she tapped her feet. The fidgeting didn't help to dispel her nervous energy.

"I'm going to a school in the Youkai Sector as part of the Outreach Program," Kagome repeated.

"What? When? Why?" Eri asked, firing the questions off one after the other and giving Kagome no chance to answer. Her voice was sharp as ever, and her brow was furrowed as she stared Kagome down.

"You're not moving, are you?" Ayumi cut in. Though softer than Eri, she still couldn't keep an accusatory tone out of her voice.

"Can I talk, please?" Kagome said.

"Fine, but make it snappy," Yuki muttered. Kagome took a deep breath and launched into a story she'd been aching to tell her friends for months.

"Back in November, when they first announced the Outreach Program, I thought it was crazy—we talked about it, remember? We said that no matter how much school the youkai paid for it was too risky. Well, I wasn't going to apply. But then I was going through some of the stuff in the storage shed at the shrine."

Kagome wasn't going through the storage shed willingly, that was for sure. Her grandpa had guilted her into the yearly chore, right after a new shipment of merchandise came in. He played the 'bad back' card, followed by the sore feet excuse, and finally dredged up a dry cough that would 'only get worse in the dust'. So Kagome got stuck with cleaning the shed. She pulled all the cardboard boxes of old merchandise, family trinkets, and questionable ancient artifacts, then started sorting them into piles for keeping and throwing away. Two dozen fake Shikon Jewel keychains? Keep and sell at the next festival. Mummified monster hand with supposed healing powers? Definitely pitch. Of course, her piles got all mixed up when Grandpa decided to periodically 'check in' on her progress. After the third time she moved all the junk back to its original placement in the throw-away pile, she exiled Grandpa to the house. So by the time she got to the boxes of her dad's stuff, she was irritated and liable to pitch anything without a 'Made in China' sticker.

—"What does any of this have to do with demon school?" Yuki asked.

"I'm getting to it!" Kagome replied.—

So she was looking through the boxes of her dad's stuff. After her dad died, her mom had taken all his pictures and put them in an album which she kept on her nightstand. Most everything he owned, save for his clothes and a few trinkets, were already in use by the family. That meant that after donating most of his clothes and giving his baseball cards to Souta, the only things left to stow away were his research files and a small wooden box that he kept under his bed. Kagome's dad had been a small time journalist. He had a steady job at the local paper writing about community events. But he also did occasional consulting work for freelance papers in stories involving the Japanese feudal era, which was the subject of his research. In the cardboard boxes were a large number of books written by human scholars who studied the ancient times, as well as diaries from the era. There were several memoirs written by youkai stashed in there as well. These books were rarer, and could fetch a price at the antique store downtown. Kagome, who had by this time created several sub-piles in the keep section, added the books to the 'sell' district of her little knickknack village. There were also folders upon folders of looseleaf papers, which included scanned in primary resources like paintings and tapestries from the era. Kagome hesitated, but added them to the pitch pile—recycling district, beside the old programs for the Sacred Tree festival. When she was through emptying out the five whole boxes of books and papers, she then turned to the wooden box that used to live under the bed. It was about the size of a cigar box, and was decorated in intricate geometric patterns on each side. Kagome tried to lift the hinged lid, but found it locked. She frowned, then examined the box more closely. There was a keyhole in the front, practically hidden in the pattern on the box.

"Great," Kagome muttered. She ran a hand over her forehead, wiping away sweat and dust. This was the last thing to sort through, but if she couldn't get inside, she had no idea what to do with it. She could just stick it back in the shed, but then she'd have to find it again next year and not know what to do with it. This would repeat, year after year, with her never knowing what to do with it and in her current exhausted state Kagome just couldn't handle the thought of having a mystery box in the shed for the rest of her life. She hauled herself to her feet and walked into the house, just in time to catch Grandpa trying to sneak out again.

"Don't touch that stuff in the yard," she warned him.

"Oh, what? What did you say dear?" her grandpa replied.

"You heard me. I know where everything is out there, remember that Grandpa," Kagome said. She then walked through the kitchen and ran up the stairs to find her mom.

"Hey mom?"

"Yes dear?" her mom replied. Kagome walked into her mom's room and found her mother folding laundry. Kagome held up the box.

"Do we have a key for this?" she asked. Her mom glanced at the box and looked quickly away.

"Grandpa cheated you into cleaning?" her mom asked.

"Yeah, he started coughing," Kagome replied. Her mom chuckled, folding pairs of socks together and throwing them into a basket on the bed.

"How's it going?"

"Fine. This is the last thing, then I can start hauling trash down to the curb," Kagome said. Her mom looked up at the box again, narrowing her eyes as she searched back into the depths of her memories.

"We used to have a key. Your dad wore it on a green cord around his neck," she said.

"Where'd it go?" Kagome asked. Her mom shook her head.

"I don't remember," her mom replied, "He never used to take it off. We may have buried it with him, for all I know." She fumbled with the socks and they fell onto the bed.

"I'm sorry mom," Kagome said quietly as her mom picked the socks back up. Her mother shook her head again.

"No, honey, it's fine," her mom said. She dropped the socks into the basket and held out her hand.

"Can I see?"

"Yeah."

Kagome handed her the box, and her mom examined it closely for a minute. She then went to her nightstand and opened the top drawer, pulling out a little glasses fixing kit with a screwdriver and pair of pliers.

"What's that for?" Kagome asked. Her mom didn't answer, but turned the box around so she could see the hinges and started to push at the hinge pins with the screwdriver. She managed to push the hinges out of place enough to grab them with the pliers and pull them out of the hinges entirely.

"There we go," she said, and handed the box back to Kagome. Kagome waited for a second, watching her mom go back to folding laundry.

"Do you want to see what's inside?" Kagome asked. Her mother shook her head.

"No thank you, dear," she replied. Kagome lingered a moment more.

"Okay," she then said, and headed back outside to find Grandpa hovering around the throw away pile.

"Gramps! Back inside!" she snapped. The old man threw up his hands and mumbled some excuse, then shuffled back into the kitchen. Kagome waited for the door to swing shut before she sat down and opened the box. Without the hinges, it opened about a quarter inch on the back side, even without the key. Kagome tried pulling it further, but the locking mechanism seemed to be made of a sturdier material than she thought and it didn't budge. She held the box up close to her face, trying to see its contents. As she shifted the box around, she heard something sliding across the wooden interior. Kagome turned the box on end and shook it, and a small flash drive slid out and bounced on the ground. She shook the box again and other things rattled inside, but nothing else fell out. She pulled at the lid, trying to get her fingers into the crack, but nothing seemed to work. Annoyed, she dropped the box onto the ground and picked up the flash drive instead.

After dinner Kagome fled to her room with the box and the flash drive. She pulled her laptop out of her backpack and booted it up, tapping her fingers by the touch pad as the old model gave her a lingering loading screen.

"Come on," she said to it, but the inanimate object didn't respond. Finally it gave her a lock screen so she could sign in. She plugged in the flash drive, and tried to pull it up on the computer, but a little box popped up asking for a password. Kagome frowned. She didn't even know flash drives could BE password encoded. She tried the standard family password, but it didn't work. She tried her mom's name, which didn't work either. When she'd exhausted family names and birthdays, she sat on her bed wracking her brain for what it could possibly be. Whatever was on the flash drive must have been something worth hiding. Kagome assumed it wasn't anything to do with the fluff pieces he wrote for the paper, and a password was a little far to go to hide embarrassing family photos. As far as she knew, the only things worth hiding in her father's life were related to his feudal era research—though even that was a stretch.

A wordless portion of a thought flashed through Kagome's mind. The image of one of the boxes she'd cleaned out earlier jumped into her head. Kagome leapt out of bed and pulled on a coat, then slipped out of her bedroom and down the darkened staircase. Padding through the kitchen on tiptoes, she walked, barefoot, out into the yard. Once she'd made it out of earshot of her family, she ran across the yard to the recycling bin full of papers she'd stuffed in there earlier. She opened the lid carefully, being sure not to let it bang against the back of the bin and alert her family to her dumpster diving. Then Kagome started to sort through the bundles of papers. At first she tried to just push them out of the way, but they started to slide and fill back in where she was searching. Kagome got frustrated, and started grabbing folders by the handful and dropping them on the ground beside the bin with a heavy slapping sound. As she pulled more papers out, she had to stand on her tip toes to bend over the side of the bin. It tipped towards her a little, and Kagome tried to step forward to rebalance. Her foot slipped on one of the papers she'd dropped to the ground and suddenly she and the recycling bin were tumbling to the ground with a loud crash that, doubtless, attracted the attention of her family. Kagome froze, looking up to her mother's darkened room. The light didn't come on. Kagome counted to ten, waiting for any sign of life. When none came, she let out a relieved breath and then returned to sorting through the papers that were now splayed out across the ground in front of her. As she made her way through the recycling, she heard a voice behind her ask:

"Sis? What's going on?" Kagome whipped her head around at her brother's voice. Souta stood behind her in the yard in his pajamas. He looked sleepy, and confused.

"Hey Souta, I accidentally threw something away today, I'm just gonna find it. I'm sorry I woke you," Kagome said. Souta frowned and walked over to her, sitting beside her on the ground. He started pulling at some of the pages.

"What are you looking for?" he asked. Kagome sighed. She supposed her brother might as well help if he was here.

"A sticky note," she said, "It's green, and it's got some numbers and letters written on it." She'd found the damn thing stuck to the bottom of one of the boxes, and just tossed it without thinking twice. Kagome and Souta sorted through the papers wordlessly for a few minutes, before Souta made the discovery.

"Found it!" he said, now more awake and excited at finding the mystery note first. He held it out to Kagome, who grabbed it eagerly.

"Thanks Souta!" she said. Souta beamed.

"What's it for?" he asked. Kagome stuck the Post-It in her coat pocket and stood, pulling the recycling bin back onto its feet.

"It's just an old password I need," she said. Souta stood by as she started picking up papers and dropping them back into the bin.

"What's the password go to?" Souta asked. Kagome paused, looking at him and considering telling him about the drive.

"An old email," she said.

"Oh," Souta said. He seemed let down. Kagome closed the bin, and put her arm around Souta's shoulders.

"Come on," she said, "You should get back to bed."

When Kagome had Cindy-Lou-Who'd her brother back to bed, she returned to her laptop and pulled the sticky note from her pocket. On it was a series of numbers and letters, which she suspected was the password for the drive. She typed "MX47DII29" into the blank space, and hit 'Enter' decisively. The password box disappeared, and was replaced by a folder with a series of files inside.

"Yes!" Kagome said aloud. She felt the discovery in her veins. It coursed through her, the excitement and satisfaction, and she eagerly began to open up the files in the sealed folder. They were all .jpeg files, images in a series. There were four total, labelled Goshinboku_1 through Goshinboku_4. Kagome opened the first photo in the series. It was a scan of an old black and white photograph. The focus wasn't quite right, and at first Kagome had trouble making out where the photo was taken. But as the blocks of black and white slowly assembled themselves into buildings in her head, she realized she was looking at her family's shrine. But the shrine wasn't the main object in the picture. The picture's focus was the Goshinboku, the sacred tree on the Higurashi property. Though Kagome recognized the tree, she didn't recognize the figure in front—no, attached to it. What looked like a human, possibly a boy with long hair, seemed to be tied to the tree, facing the photographer. Kagome zoomed in on the boy in her picture viewer. In the blur that was his face, she thought she could make out that his eyes were closed. A thin scratch of white extended from his chest. It could just be damage to the original photograph that her father must have scanned in on a computer, but it was pin-straight and ended as soon as it hit the boy's chest. It looked kind of like a stick. Kagome couldn't see any ropes that would hold the boy in place, but his feet were clearly not resting on the ground. Instead they hung limply from his legs. His whole body seemed limp, as if he were asleep, though he appeared to be floating in the air.

Kagome zoomed back out, and spotted a date at the bottom of the frame. It looked like it had been written in silver Sharpie directly onto the original photograph. The date read: June, 1852.

"What?" Kagome said aloud. She wondered: _Were there even cameras in 1852?_ The word 'hoax' jumped into her mind. She opened the second jpeg in the file, hoping it would provide some clarity. The second photograph was also of the Goshinboku, but had no mysterious boy pinned to the tree. The date at the bottom read: August, 1854.

The third jpeg was a picture of a painting. It looked similar to a Sesshū piece, black ink on a plain white background with bold strokes and simplified shapes. More importantly, it featured the image of a young man in traditional dress pinned to a tree. An arrow shaft, complete with feathers, extended from his chest. Kagome pulled the first picture up alongside the painting, and now saw the single white scratch could easily be an arrow shaft. She looked back to the painting. Upon closer examination, she saw two little triangle shapes extending from the boy's head. She couldn't tell what the triangles were supposed to represent, but it could be some sort of hat, maybe a religious garment.

The fourth picture was clearly more recent. Taken on a city street, it showed a group of men standing around a person laying on the ground. Kagome felt a chill push through her veins as she saw a red liquid spreading out from the prone figure. It was blood. Some of the men wore Japanese police uniforms, but others simply had badges with various crests pinned to the sleeves of their shirts. Kagome recognized this scene. Everyone living in Japan would. Dozens of Japanese reporters were at this crime scene, snapping pictures of the then most recent murder by the Youkai Killer. The men standing around the body were the famed special task force made up of human police and youkai private detectives. The man on the ground wasn't a man at all, but a toad demon. He was 272 years old, or 33HE years. He had a wife and two children. He owed no debts and had no criminal connections. He owned a restaurant that served traditional youkai food. All of these facts had been drilled into Kagome's head in her years of schooling. It was this string of murders that, in 1986, forced the Youkai Sector to open its gates to humans for the first time since its founding.

Kagome pulled up the other three pictures and arranged them side by side on her desktop. The last was clearly the odd one out. She scanned it again, looking for any reason that it would be in a folder with pictures and a painting of the Goshinboku. A figure at the very edge of the frame caught her attention. He was in profile to the picture, just barely in the image at all, but his red clothes stood out among the other bystanders watching the crime scene. He was a young man with long white hair and—get this—white triangular ears. Kagome could only see the one facing the camera, but thought it was safe to assume there were two. She looked back to the little triangle shapes on the painting. They could be ears. With the simplistic painting style, there was no way to tell for sure, but they could definitely be ears.

Checking the time, Kagome found it was well past midnight. As soon as her brain realized how late it was, her body quickly caught up. Within minutes, her eyelids felt heavy and her limbs felt tired. Curiosity still burned within her, but was quickly overtaken by her need for sleep. She shut down the laptop and went to sleep. In her dreams she chased after the shadowy figure of a white-haired boy.

"But WHY do you want to go through the Outreach Program?" Eri asked. Eri, Yuki, and Ayumi had sat patiently through the whole story, but were still looking at Kagome from across the table like she was crazy.

"Because he's there! The boy in the pictures and the painting is in the Youkai Sector," Kagome said. Her friends' expressions didn't change as they failed to connect the dots.

"So?" Yuki asked. Kagome sighed.

"Look, in 1852 he was pinned to the tree at my family's shrine _with an arrow_ , but by 1854 he was gone. Do you know what happened between 1852 and 1853?" Her friends tried to recall their various history classes, but were having little luck.

"Commodore Perry came from the U.S. and made us take a letter from the American President," Kagome said, answering her own question. Expressions of recognition flitted over her friends' faces.

"And that's why the demons formed the Youkai Sector and closed it to all humans, sure, but what does this have to do with a random youkai?" Yuki said. Kagome reached into her shirt and pulled out the flash drive with the pictures, now hanging on a cord around her neck. She held it up, shaking it for emphasis as she spoke.

"My dad locked this away before he died. Whatever he was researching has to do with these pictures and that boy. If I can find the boy, maybe he can tell me something. And to find him, I've got to get to the Youkai Sector," Kagome said. Her friends were all silent for a long minute, taking in her words. Yuki was scowling, Eri was concentrating very closely on her hands, and Ayumi was biting her lip. Ayumi was the first to speak, and she did so hesitantly.

"Kagome," she said, "I understand that this is really important to you...but just remember, your dad's car crash was an accident." Kagome leaned back in her seat with a huff, crossing her arms.

"I'm just saying," Ayumi continued in an annoyingly reasonable and caring tone, "You've always said that there was—that there had to be some...you know...reason for his...passing. But it was ruled as an accident. I don't think you'll find what you're looking for—" Kagome cut her off.

"I'm just looking for why he had these pictures on a flash drive. Besides, I want to be a journalist, and this could lead to a good story. That's it," Kagome said. Ayumi nodded.

"Sure, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say...I mean...you know," she replied.

"Yeah," Kagome said.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Train to Hell**

Kagome and her mom sat at the kitchen table, waiting for the cab. They'd packed quickly that morning, leaving themselves with an awkward twenty minutes to spare before it was time to say goodbye. Souta was at school. Gramps was outside, sweeping his nerves away.

Kagome was also trying to distract herself, though her phone was proving to be a futile effort. She rotated between all her apps, opening them in hopes of a new notification, and closing them again when none came. Email. Facebook. Twitter. Random game. Email. Facebook-you get the idea.

"Kagome?"

Kagome looked up at her mom's voice, relieved to have something else to focus on. Her nerves and boredom were mixing unpleasantly in the pit of her stomach.

"Yeah?" she replied.

"I know you want to do this-I want you to do this-but promise me something."

"What is it?" Kagome asked.

"I know there aren't any phones or internet in the Sector, but I want you to remember you can come home whenever you need to." Kagome nodded dutifully.

"Yeah, Mama." Her mom reached out and grabbed her hand across the table. She stared into Kagome's face intensely.

"I mean it, Kagome," her mom said, "If something doesn't feel right, come home. Promise me you will." Kagome nodded again, meeting her mom's gaze.

"I will, I promise," she said. Her mom let go of Kagome's hand and pulled her arm back across the table.

"Thank you," she said. Kagome's phone buzzed. She looked down and found a text from Akane. It read: 'SOS ASAP'.

"I'll be right back," Kagome said to her mom. She called Akane, walking into the foyer for a little privacy. Akane picked up on the second ring.

"Kagome! It's a disaster." Kagome started pacing in small circles around the foyer.

"What's a disaster?" she asked.

"We have to pull our front page, student council just told us," Akane said. Kagome put a hand on her hip.

"What? Why?"

"It's the dress code story. They say it undermines teacher authority."

"Yeah," Kagome replied, "That's the point."

"What do I do!? They just sent us an email, we're supposed to pull it!" Akane said. The girl was frantic, speaking almost too quickly for Kagome to understand.

"Akane, take a breath," Kagome said. Akane paused, sucking in a breath and letting it out quickly.

"I mean it!" Kagome said, "Slow in, slow out."

"Okay, okay," Akane said, complying. Only after Kagome heard her slow exhale did she speak again.

"You know, if you already sent the file to the printer, there's nothing you can do."

"But we didn't-"

"Realize there was going to be a problem before you sent it over? Me neither. I thought the council would appreciate students exercising their freedom of the press." There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line.

"Oooh…" Akane said softly.

"See ya, Akane," Kagome said.

"Wait!" Kagome paused, poised to hang up.

"What?" she asked. Hesitantly, Akane spoke.

"Thank you. I'm gonna miss you," she said. Kagome smiled.

"I'll be back at break. It's just two months. Take care of my paper Ms. Interim Editor," she replied. She could almost see Akane's vigorous nod.

"I will! Goodbye Kagome."

"Goodbye."

A car's horn honked outside as Kagome hung up her phone. Seconds later her Grandpa burst through the kitchen door, shouting: "It's here! It's time!"

Kagome jolted awake as the train came into their next stop. She pulled her hood out of her face, glancing around, bleary-eyed. A few kids boarded the car, showing their tickets and IDs to the private security officers as they came in. Kagome settled back down in her seat, closing her eyes to resume her nap. She was only barely drifting off when she heard someone stop right beside her row.

"Excuse me?" a girl asked. Kagome cracked a single eye open, holding back her immediate annoyance.

"Yeah?" she replied.

"Is anyone sitting here?" Kagome shook her head.

"Oh, good," the girl replied. She plopped down in the seat next to Kagome. Kagome suppressed a groan, pulling her hood off her head completely to see the girl better. The girl was short and petite. Her hair was long, pin-straight, and a pretty light brown. Unlike Kagome's comfortable hoodie and leggings, she wore a blouse and skirt. She was far too cheery for a sleepy Kagome. She was-

"Karin," she said, "That's my name."

"I'm Kagome." Karin grinned, her smile seeming to stretched from ear to ear. Kagome wasn't sure why she was so excited.

"It's great to meet you," she said, "It's great to meet anyone, actually. I'm kinda nervous-well, super nervous, actually."

"Really?" Kagome said. She spoke in a near grumble, but Karin didn't seem to take the hint.

"Yeah! I've never seen a Youkai before. I've read so much about them though, I've always wanted to meet one, you know?"

Kagome propped herself up against her arm rest, resigned to conversing with her new seatmate. This was going to be a long ride.

Karin was from Tokyo. She was fifteen, and had grown up in the heart of the city. She was an only child, and her parents both worked, so she spent a lot of time alone. Most of that time was with her nose in a book, and most of those books were about youkai. She'd always wanted to go to the sector, and so when the educational program was announced she went out and applied immediately. Her parents weren't too pleased, but she managed to convince them a well-rounded education in the sector would help her get into a good college. But what about Kagome?  
"Huh?" Kagome said. Karin's breathless run-ons had lulled her into a daze. Karin repeated her question.

"What about you? Why are you here?" she asked.

"I want to be a reporter," she said. Karin's brow furrowed.

"Oh," she said, in the same tone of voice that Kagome used when her brother tried to describe exactly why his new videogame was the ultimate in the art form. In other words, Karin didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"I want to write a story about the IOEP, from an insider perspective. And get interviews with students-human and demon. I'm-I was the editor of my high school paper," Kagome elaborated. She was surprised how easily the lie rolled off her tongue. She could hardly say she was looking for any connection to her dad's death, after all. Karin sucked in a breath, once again grinning from ear to ear.

"That is so cool! Can you interview me?" she asked. Kagome flushed with the praise, then noticed she was smiling.

"Um, yeah, sure," she said. Karin nodded, then waited.

"Right now?" Kagome asked.

"Sure!"

"Oh...okay." Kagome reached into her backpack and pulled out a small notebook and pen. She wrote Karin's name down, her age, and where she lived. Then she tried to think of a good question. Karin caught her off guard, and considering she wasn't actually writing a story, she wasn't sure what to ask. Karin waited patiently, the smile never wavering from her face. Kagome started to wonder if the girl's bubbly personality was an act.

"Why are you so happy?" she asked, before she could stop herself. Karin cocked her head to the side, and Kagome watched her like a bomb about to go off. She hadn't meant to ask such an offensive question. But Karin didn't seem offended in the least, and when she answered, she actually appeared genuine.

"I guess I'm just not bored for the first time in my life," she said.

"Bored?" Kagome repeated. Karin nodded.

"I always felt like I was missing out on something really cool, just because I'm human. Human life is boring-human _schools_ are boring! Dress codes and dry history lessons out of the same old textbooks. Teachers who don't care about discovering new things, just talking about old ones. But this school, youkai school, can't possibly be boring," she said. Kagome made a note in her pad.

"What do you want to happen when we get there?" she asked. Karin leaned in, locking intense eyes with her.

"I want to learn everything," she said. Kagome was about to ask her to elaborate, but she continued on her own, "What was the feudal era really like? What kinds of demons live in the sector? What do they think of humans? I want to meet my sponsors and ask why they paid for me to come. I want to see a youkai use its powers-"

"What if something bad happens?" Kagome cut in. Normally she didn't cut her interviewees off, but Karin could go on, she was sure.

"Bad?"

"Things have gone wrong between humans and youkai before," Kagome said.

"Yeah," Karin agreed, "but what if nothing bad happens?" Kagome stared at Karin's earnest face. The girl was smiling, confident, as if she was privy to some great secret. Her eyes seemed to burn with it. Slowly, Kagome nodded.

The train slowed, then stopped. Kagome looked out the window, but saw no people milling about on the station beyond. At the back of the car, a couple students stood and stared out the window on the opposite side of the train. Both Karin and Kagome turned to see what caught their attention. Karin sprang from her seat to the empty window across their aisle. Kagome followed her, craning her neck to see over Karin's head.

A single figure walked up the platform. She held a tall shepherd's crook, and in the curve of the crook hung a lantern that glowed green. Her clothing was a strange mix of traditional japanese and western styles-hakama with a loose fitting blouse. But none of these oddities were what drew Kagome's eye. The woman walked on small orange paws. Kagome stared at her paws as she passed, then caught sight of a bushy orange tail tipped in white. Just like a fox.

The door slid open, and the fox woman stepped inside. The humans inside the train car froze as the youkai surveyed them. The corner of her mouth turned up in a lopsided smile, and a single sharp canine slipped out from under her lip.

"Welcome kits," she said, "Follow me." Then she turned and walked out. The students were still for a moment longer, then rushed into action. Kagome and Karin pulled their suitcases from above their seats and made their way towards the line headed out the door.

The first thing Kagome noticed when she stepped outside was the air. A light breeze blew through the outdoor station, and it carried with it the smell of salt and rain. It was, she thought, the cleanest air she'd ever tasted.

"Name?"

Kagome looked down the steps, and saw the demoness standing on the platform with a clipboard and pen.

"Your name?" she asked again.

"Oh!" Kagome said, and rushed down the steps with her heavy suitcase.

"Higurashi Kagome," she said. The fox woman ran her pen down the list and checked Kagome off.

"Nice to meet you Ms. Higurashi. I am Ina," she said. Kagome smiled at her, nodding. Then she realized she was holding up the line and hurried to move out of the way, nearly tripping over her suitcase in the process. Wrestling her suitcase back onto its wheels, Kagome joined Karin a few feet away as their crowd waited for Ina to check people off. Karin was bouncing up and down on her toes, fingers gripping the strap of her suitcase with white-knuckled excitement.

"What do you think?" she whispered to Kagome.

"What?"

"Of Ms. Ina! What do you think?" Karin whispered again. Kagome glanced over to Ina, and found the demoness already looking at her. Kagome flushed red, turning back to face Karin.

"That she can hear everything we're saying," Kagome whispered.

"No way!" Karin whispered back, "So cool!" Cool and convenient, Kagome thought.

When Ina had finished checking all the students in, she took up her crook-which was mysteriously able to stand on its own-and walked to the head of the crowd.

"Now then, if you'll follow me, we're headed to the dormitory. There are no cars here, so we'll be walking through the city. Guards will join us, but remember, keep up. Nighttime in the Floating City can be dangerous for humans," she said. She gave a stern glare around the group, then broke out into a smile.

"Now that I've appropriately spooked you, let's get going." With that, she turned on her heel and began to lead the group towards the station exit. The train beside them hissed a little, then began to reverse down the tracks and back to the mainland. It took its yellow light with it, leaving them with only the green of Ina's lantern and the blue moonlight.

Kagome pulled out her phone to check the time. Eight pm. And no signal, going by the flashing signal at the corner of her screen. Of course, she knew there wasn't cellphone coverage or internet in the sector, but the feeling of being truly isolated struck her. She'd never been completely out of touch with her family, not like this. An arm linked through hers, and Kagome looked up to see Karin smiling at her.

"Exciting, right?" she said, nodding at Kagome's signal-less phone.

"You and I have very different definitions of exciting," Kagome muttered. Karin giggled.

They climbed the steps out of the station and found themselves on a wide cobblestone street. Lanterns of all colors and sizes hung off balconies of the tall buildings to either side. Kagome tried to gauge the buildings' heights, but looking up found herself grow dizzy at the distance. Head spinning, she brought her gaze back down to Earth-level to see Ina greeting a couple burly demons. These had to be their guards. Kagome watched Ina's fox tail swish back and forth, but then movement across the street caught her eye. A pair of demons, seemingly middle-aged men, had come out of a tea shop and were staring at the group of humans. In fact, all around them youkai were stopping to stare. The students stared back, equally stunned. They'd all learned about demons since grade school, but seeing them in the flesh was entirely new.

Youkai were of all shapes and sizes, most of them wearing strange mixtures of Japanese and western clothing, many going barefoot. Kagome's eyes swept over a pair of frog demons, then raced back to stare rudely at the strange round couple. Of course, they were equally rudely gazing at her, so she didn't feel too bad. Hesitantly, she raised a hand and gave them a limp-wristed wave. This seemed to pull them out of their stupor. They looked at each other, exchanged a few words, then raised webbed hands and waved back. Kagome felt a smile rush to her face. Looking around at the other humans, she saw similar expressions of surprised happiness. Then Ina was talking again.

"This way kits," she said, "Remember, stay on the path." The group started to move forward, following Ina's swaying lantern. The guards flanked them, glaring down the closest Youkai just in case they had any ill will towards the young humans. Kagome caught one last glance of the frog couple, and then they were around a corner.

Just like the Youkai clothing, the city itself seemed to be a strange mix of traditional and modern. Some buildings were painted wood with multiple curved roofs, and other were glassy skyscrapers. Some even started as wood then turned into glass as Kagome swept her eyes upward. Most buildings seemed to have been built upon over the years, starting as simple one-story houses and growing into restaurants and convenience shops and business centers. Building up, not out, made sense on such a small island.

And then they came to the gate. At first Kagome thought they were coming to a 'T' in the road, but then she realized that ahead of them was not a line of buildings, but a two-story wall made of grey brick. Centered in that wall was a large wooden gate, with a smaller wooden counter cut into the wall beside it. Ina walked up to the demon sitting at the counter and handed him her clipboard. His eyes ran down the list and he gave a curt nod, then disappeared behind the other side of the wall.

"What do you think…" Karin started to ask, but trailed off as a great creak ripped through the air. The large gates in front of them swung inwards slowly, pulled by the single Youkai from the inside. Kagome watched, wide-eyed, as his muscles strained to open the great doors. Then the gate was open and Ina led them inside.

Campus was surprisingly green. Completely different from the streets outside, the school grounds consisted of building clusters surrounded by rolling hills of grass. Sidewalks cut gracefully through the green, connecting cluster to cluster. Large trees, seemingly ancient, dotted the landscape. They walked around the edge, beside the wall, for about five minutes before coming to a stand-alone building. This was the dormitory, where all the human students would stay.

Ina brought them into the common room, a large and comfy space with two fireplaces and lounge-y furniture.

"Welcome to your sector home," she said, "I'll give out room assignments in a moment, but first I want to say a few words." She set her crook aside-again it stood on its own-and gestured around the space.

"This is the safest place in the city," she said, "No unwanted demon can enter here, and I decide who's wanted. My job is to be your protector, your therapist, and your new mom. Which means I get to kick you in the ass if you mess up my house." A chuckle ran through the students, and Ina grinned.

"If you need anything in the next two months, I'm here," she said. She pointed towards a wooden door across the room.

"Literally," she said, "Right there. If you need help, be smart and ask for it. Got that?" The students gave a vaguely affirmative response.

"You're as good as my kits, every one of you," Ina said. She paused a moment, and Kagome thought she saw something like sadness flick across Ina's face. But then it was gone, and there was a new clipboard in Ina's hands, seemingly conjured from nowhere.

"Room assignments," she chirped, "101 is Itami and Kahae." Itami and Kahae walked forward to claim their keys, then headed off to find their room.

Kagome was paired with a 'Tayama' girl, to Karin's great disappointment. But Kagome weaved her way through the crowd to get her key, and met Tayama at Ina's side. The girl was tall, with long dark hair and a blank expression. Kagome smiled at her, but she didn't seem to notice.

They walked in silence to their room, 206, and Kagome felt the heavy awkwardness stretch between them. Geez, she thought, you could at least smile at me…

"Which side of the room do you want?" Kagome asked. Tayama put her bag down on the right side.

"Here's fine," she said.

"Okay," Kagome replied, walking to the left. The room was small, with two beds, two dressers, and two nightstands. A single window was centered between the beds on the far wall. There was a shared bathroom down the hall. The two girls began to unpack their clothes in silence, and Kagome felt herself start to grow angry at Tayama. She tried to think of something to say, but the longer the silence stretched the more awkward it seemed to say anything. Finally, when she just couldn't take it any longer, she turned around and-

"I'm Tayama Sango," Tayama said, "Please call me Sango."

"Call me Kagome," Kagome replied. Tayama-Sango-nodded curtly and turned back to her unpacking.

"Nice to meet you," Kagome said. She tried to keep sarcasm out of her voice, but wasn't sure how successful she was. Sango paused. She glanced at Kagome.

"Yeah," she said, "I hope we can be friends." Kagome nodded.

"Me too," she replied.

Later, when they were getting ready for bed, Kagome caught a glimpse of Sango's back as she pulled on a t-shirt. An ugly scar marred the otherwise smooth skin. Bright pink against her tan, it looked almost like claw marks. Kagome looked back to her hands before Sango saw her staring. She turned her dad's flash drive over and over in her fingers, the cord still looped around her neck.

"Ready to turn out the light?" Sango asked.

"Sure," Kagome said. Sango reached under the lampshade on her nightstand and flicked off the last light in the room. Kagome shoved the flash drive back into her shirt and rolled onto her side.

"Goodnight, Sango," she said. For a moment there was silence.

"Goodnight," Sango said, quietly, from her side of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: A Whole New World**

Kagome woke to frantic knocking on her door. She moaned, burying her head deeper into her pillow. From outside her room, Karin called to her.

"Kagome! Come on, wake up, this is so cool," she said. Kagome heard Sango get out of bed and walk over to the door. She yanked it open.

"What do you want?" she snapped at Karin.

"Oh," Karin said, "Hello, sorry. You're Tayama?"

"Sango," Sango replied. Kagome could imagine Karin's wide smile.

"I'm Karin! I'm so glad to meet you Sango, I'm sure we'll all be good friends! But you guys have to get dressed, they've got breakfast downstairs for us, and it's amazing." Immediately Kagome lifted her head from the pillow.

"Breakfast?" she mumbled.

Breakfast was an understatement. This was a feast. When the three girls made it to the common room, they saw long tables nearly overflowing with food. Fruits, pastries, cereals, yogurt cups, stacks of pancakes and french toast, and every other breakfast food imaginable. An omelette cart stood off to the side, a line already forming. Kagome checked to make sure she wasn't drooling before grabbing a plate and going for some pancakes. Once she'd piled her plate high, she found Karin and Sango sitting by one of the fireplaces. Karin was digging into a bowl of cereal and fruit, while Sango was munching on a pear.

"I could get used to this," Kagome said, digging in.

"Ina said it's a one-time thing," Karin replied, "But the dining hall's like two minutes away." Sango's eyes flicked up, and someone behind Kagome spoke.

"Morning, ladies," Ina said. Kagome forced her mouthful of food down, then turned to face their 'den mother'.

"Morning," she and Karin chorused. Sango chewed her pear. Ina, holding up another clipboard, smiled at them.

"I'm glad you're getting something to eat, today's a big day," she said. Kagome stared at her blankly.

"I've got your class schedules," Ina continued, pulling some papers from her clipboard. _Duh, Kagome!_ Kagome thought as Ina handed the papers to each of them.

"If you have any questions, let me know. There are maps by the juice table, so take one before you leave."

"Thanks Ms. Ina," Karin said. Kagome nodded in agreement.

"Of course," Ina replied. She looked at Kagome.

"And if you have any concerns," she said, "My door is always open." Kagome stiffened a little. Then Ina walked over to another group, leaving Kagome to wonder what exactly she was implying.

Karin squealed.

"Look at these classes!" she said, "A History of Interspecies Duels? Cuisine of the Youkai Elite? So cool…"

"We have to cook?" Sango mumbled, leaning over to compare her schedule to Karin's.

"What do you have, Kagome?" Karin asked. Kagome looked down to her schedule.

"World Youkai, Ethics in Media, Understanding the Youkai Sector-"

"I have that too," Sango said. Karin snatched Kagome's paper, reading over the classes.

"No fair! No classes with Kagome…" she whined. Kagome pulled her paper back gently, leaning over to see Karin's schedule.

"But you've got Crafts Across Cultures," she said, "That sounds fun. Maybe you'll get to make a demon katana." Karin giggled at the thought of learning swordsmithing.

"And I'll show a youkai how to make a cute bento," she added. Kagome laughed and Sango cracked a smile.

Kagome and Sango got dressed quickly, but it was already nine by the time they headed out of the dorm. It was strange, Kagome thought, considering her classes usually started at eight a.m. and went through the day, non stop. In her new schedule she had gaps, sometimes more than an hour long, and the classes she attended depended on the day. Today, Monday, she had a ten a.m. 'Understanding the Youkai Sector', a one p.m. 'Writing for Publication', and a three-thirty p.m. 'World Youkai'. After a quick check to make sure her flashdrive was securely around her neck, Kagome and Sango left their room and headed towards Taisho Hall at a leisurely rate. Sango, seemingly a skilled map-reader, took charge of navigation. Kagome was content to follow and take in their surroundings. Campus was completely different in the daytime. When they came in the night before, she didn't notice the academic buildings up the slope. The library, Taisho Hall, and several other buildings rose out of the grassy landscape. Made of wood and glass, they glinted in the sunlight.

"It doesn't even feel like a city in here," Kagome commented. Sango 'hmm'd in response.

"So…" Kagome said, trying to make conversation, "Where are you from?"

"Hokkaido." When Sango didn't elaborate, Kagome tried again:

"Where in Hokkaido?"

"The mountains," Sango said. After a moment she added: "Near Furano." Sango glanced at Kagome, then quickly away, pursing her lips.

"So this is a big change," Kagome said. Sango nodded.

"Why did you apply to the program?" Kagome asked. She resisted the urge to pull out her notebook, not wanting to spook Sango back into her shell.

"My family asked me to," Sango replied. By the tone of her voice, Kagome wasn't going to get anywhere further down that line of questioning. She redirected:

"What does your family do?"

"They give hiking tours," Sango said, quickly, "My parents do, at least. Sometimes I help." Kagome smiled at her.

"My family runs a shrine," she said, "And they drag me into helping too. My gramps is nuts about the place." Sango looked to her, a hint of a smile crossing her face. Kagome felt a swell of pride. Getting Sango to smile was not an easy task. It didn't last long. Sango was quickly back to business, pointing out one of the wood and glass buildings.

"We're in here," she said.

They walked into 'Understanding the Youkai Sector' a few minutes early. Kagome sat down close to the front, Sango walking past her to sit at the back of the room. _Okay then_ , Kagome thought. And here she thought they were bonding.

Friendless, Kagome looked around the rest of the room at the other students who'd arrived early. Most were human. There was a gangly boy sitting in the front row who, when he turned his head, had greenish freckles on his face and a long, pink tongue. He caught Kagome staring, and she flushed, looking down at her desk. When she looked up again he was already turned forward. Kagome checked her phone to see the time. It was almost ten, and there was no sign of the teacher.

Just as the thought crossed her mind, a tall man walked into the classroom and shut the door behind him. He carried a briefcase, and wore a pair of rimless glasses.

"Hello class," he said, "My name is-"

Someone tried to open the door from the hallway, then began knocking frantically. Turning to face the door, the teacher raised an eyebrow. He glanced back to the class.

"Should I let them in?" he asked, grinning a little. The students exchanged confused glances, wondering if the question was rhetorical. The teacher looked straight at Kagome, crossing his arms.

"What do you think?" he asked. Kagome gestured to herself. The teacher nodded.

"It's just the first day," she said, "they could've gotten lost."

"That's true," the teacher said. He walked over to the door and pulled it open, revealing a flushed boy standing on the other side.

"Hello Tardy," the teacher greeted.

"Sorry," 'Tardy' said, "I got lost." The teacher stepped aside, letting the boy through to take a seat. He plopped down in the desk next to Kagome, school supplies nearly falling out of his arms. The teacher closed the door and resumed his place behind his desk.

"As I was saying," he said, "My name is Mr. Ooturo. For those of you who are wondering, yes, I am a youkai, though I appear human to you now." Kagome quickly pulled out a notebook and started scribbling in it.

She wrote: Mr. Ooturo, demon, human disguise.

"This class is called 'Understanding the Youkai Sector'. It is required for all first-semester human students, and recommended for demon students as well. The purpose of this class is to enrich your understanding of this city and its history. I'll be doing most of the talking in here, but if you have any questions, please just raise your hand whenever. I…" Mr. Ooturo trailed off, staring at the boy beside Kagome. She glanced over, and saw that he had his hand raised high.

"Yes, Tardy?" Mr. Ooturo said. He seemed cautious, as if he weren't sure this question would at all pertain to understanding the Youkai Sector.

"What type of demon are you?" the boy asked. A whisper ran around the room. Mr. Ooturo nodded.

"I suppose that's a fair question," he said, "rude, but fair." Kagome jotted down that asking a demon's type was rude.

"I'm a tree spirit," Mr. Ooturo said, "I was once tied to a tree that grew where Tokyo now stands. I suppose you could say my job is to teach you how I lost that home." Kagome wrote 'tree spirit' next to Mr. Ooturo's name.

"We'll begin with the feudal era," Mr. Ooturo said, turning to the board. Picking up a marker, he started to write dates and names. Kagome heard the students behind her shift, retrieving notepads and pens. The only student who didn't jump into action was 'Tardy'. He simply sat, leaned forward in his desk, listening intently to Mr. Ooturo's words.

"So there you have it," Mr. Ooturo said, stepping back from the now crowded board. He turned to his class, most of which was still frantically writing down Youkai names and various battles. Kagome finished her last stroke, and started massaging the base of her thumb for some relief in her hand.

"That's the basic overview of the feudal power structure in Youkai society. This power structure existed until the Sector was founded, and sometimes still defines our social roles today. Of course, that's probably because our oldest Youkai were alive in the feudal era, and they don't like change." The class giggled. For a history teacher, Mr. Ooturo could be funny. Especially when he called ancient demon generals 'righteous pricks who couldn't hold their sake'. Of course, he'd actually met them, so he'd know. The thought made Kagome's head spin. This man was hundreds of years old! Looking at him, she'd never be able to tell.

"Yes, Mr. Tardy?" Mr. Ooturo said, gesturing to the boy who sat beside Kagome.

"What about Lord Naraku?" he asked. Mr. Ooturo sucked in a breath. Kagome glanced between the boy and the teacher. 'Tardy's eyes were narrowed, a fist clenched on his desk. Kagome frowned, she hadn't noticed when he came in, but the boy was wearing a single glove.

"You mean the Lord Naraku who is pouring funds into this education program?" Mr. Ooturo asked, "What about him?"

"What kind of demon is he? Does he have powers?" 'Tardy' asked. Mr. Ooturo picked up an eraser and started to clear the board.

"That is hardly my information to share. If you want to ask Lord Naraku, feel free," he said.

"But-"

"Class dismissed," Mr. Ooturo said. 'Tardy' crossed his arms, sinking down in his seat while the other students began to pack up. Kagome threw her stuff into her backpack and headed towards the door, but Mr. Ooturo stopped her.

"Ms. Higurashi, a word?" he asked. Kagome felt herself grow nervous, but pushed the feeling down and approached Mr. Ooturo's desk.

"I hope that note-taking didn't wear you down too much," he said as he took some papers and put them back in his briefcase. Kagome shook her head.

"No sir," she said, "I'm a quick writer."

"That's good. I'm sorry to keep you, but I have to say I'm intrigued by your surname. I can't help but feel I've heard 'Higurashi' somewhere before," Mr. Ooturo said.

"I don't know," Kagome replied, "Maybe you've heard of our shrine? It's small, but it's been in the family for a long time." Mr. Ooturo nodded absently.

"Perhaps," he said, "Anyway, if you have any questions about the course, please let me know. I'll see you Wednesday." Kagome nodded, then fled the room. Sango was waiting for her outside.

"Sorry," Kagome said, "You ready for lunch? I'm starved!" Sango nodded, steering them down the hall and towards food.

Sango, Karin, and Kagome sat in the common room, in front of one of the fireplaces. Someone, maybe Ina, had built the fire up and it was pleasantly crackling away.

"Did you know that dog demons and wolf demons have had this huge rivalry for like...forever?" Karin was saying, "There was a huge battle between Inuuki of the West and the Northern wolf tribe-one youkai against a whole army! And she won!"

"Which class was this?" Kagome asked.

"Oh, this wasn't from class, I was just talking to one of the youkai students. Her father was one of the wolves who survived the battle. He said he would never mess with an Inuyoukai after that."

"They're rare," Sango said, "Always were." Karin started to chatter away again, this time about some duel between a famous monk and youkai. Kagome, weary from the day, let her mind drift a little. Sango seemed to be paying attention to Karin well enough.

Kagome knew she would like her 'Writing for Publication' class. It was a mix of demons and humans, some of whom had an interest in journalism. Most wanted a writing credit. Kagome had learned, to her disappointment, that there was no student newspaper on campus. There weren't really any newspapers in the Youkai Sector. It was so small and packed together that most people heard the news within a matter of hours. But her teacher seemed knowledgeable nonetheless-a thunder youkai who'd worked closely with reporters when the Youkai Killer was around. She was eager for the chance to put together some writing samples.

World Youkai was another history class, not nearly as interesting as Mr. Ooturo's lecture. Mostly they were learning about long-extinct demon breeds, either hunted down by humans or each other. But, Kagome reminded herself, there was an upcoming lecture on dragons, so it couldn't be too boring. 'Tardy' boy would probably really like it, since he seemed so curious about demon types and powers.

Kagome realized she was absently fiddling with her dad's flashdrive. She stuffed it back down her shirt, not wanting Karin or Sango to ask any questions.

Distracted by her classes, she hadn't thought about finding out what happened to her dad all day. She wasn't quite sure where to start. All she knew was she was looking for the boy in the pictures. Kagome slumped down in her chair. It was dumb, but she thought he might be a student. Or maybe she would just run into him on the street. Or maybe he'd seek her out, somehow knowing she was there to see him. Yeah, pretty dumb.

"You okay, Kagome?" Karin asked. Kagome nodded.

"Just tired," she said.

By Friday, Kagome was homesick. She wanted to call her mom, but her phone didn't work. She couldn't even text her. She lay in bed Friday morning, caught between getting up and going to breakfast or rolling back over and drifting back off to sleep. Really she wished she could get up and go to class to distract herself, but there wasn't even that option. Classes had been cancelled that day, because of the Sponsors' Lunch. Kagome grimaced thinking about it. All the human students had to attend and meet their sponsors, the Youkai who paid for them to come to the Sector. Ina had explained that once they'd met preliminary qualifications, each student was hand-picked by a sponsor who reviewed their grades, extracurricular activities, and family life. These sponsors had made a personal investment in the future of human and youkai students blah-blah-blah… So they were going to meet them. Karin was ecstatic. Kagome sighed, throwing her blanket off and swinging her legs out of bed.

"Sango, come get breakfast with me," she whined. Sango grunted, still half-asleep.

"Please?" Kagome replied, walking over to her dresser and pulling out the comfiest clothes she could find. Sango mumbled something unintelligible.

"It's Continental day," Kagome said, trying to tempt her out of bed with the promise of eggs and bacon. Sango, evidently, was not as motivated by food as Kagome was. Kagome sighed.

"See you later then," she said. No response. Sango was already off to dreamland. Alone, Kagome left their room and headed out of the dorm. She had to admit, being away from Sango and Karin for the first time in a week was nice. She liked her new friends, but it was exhausting being around people all the time.

Breakfast did wonders for Kagome's mood. She returned to their room to find Sango doing her morning meditation, dressed in a sports bra and yoga pants. Curiously, Kagome snuck another peek at the scars on her back. She winced a little, imagining the wound that made them. Then she realized Sango's eyes were open and she was caught staring.

"Sorry," she mumbled, putting an apple down on Sango's nightstand.

"It's okay," Sango said, "They're old." She stood and stretched, then grabbed the apple.

"Thank you," she said. Kagome nodded, sitting down on her bed.

"How did you get them?" she asked.

"I was on a hike that went south," Sango said. Kagome's eyes widened. Were those from a bear? Or a mountain lion?

"Were you attacked by something?" she asked. Sango tensed a little.

"I fell," she said, voice curt. _That was a lie_ , Kagome thought to herself. She didn't want to push the topic, though. It wasn't her business.

"Have a nice run," she said as Sango left. Then she settled down to the real question of the day: what should she wear to meet her sponsor?

An hour, four outfits, and a Karin later, Kagome settled on wearing a dress. Ina didn't say whether it was a formal lunch, but better safe than sorry. So they got dressed and headed to the bathroom so Karin could curl her hair. Kagome sat on the counter, playing with her flash drive while Karin fussed with her bangs.

"I wish I had curls like you," Karin said. Kagome scoffed.

"What? I do! They're so pretty," Karin said. Kagome smiled at the compliment.

"Thank you, but they're a pain in the ass." She tucked her flash drive away and hopped off the counter, turning to face herself in the mirror.

"Who do you think your sponsor is?" she asked Karin.

"I dunno," Karin replied, "I hope they're nice. I want to stay the night off campus if they are."

"You can do that?" Kagome asked. Karin nodded.

"If you're staying with your sponsor. Otherwise you have to be back before dark."

Sango opened the bathroom door, calling to them.

"We're gonna be late," she said.

"Five more minutes," Karin pleaded. Kagome pulled the curler from her hands and herded her towards the door.

"Your hair looks fine," she said.

As soon as they entered the library commons, Karin completely forgot she was worried about her hair. The sight of so many demons, some wearing armor, others dressed in fine silks, had her drooling. These weren't the scrappy students, they were the youkai elite.

A mousy demon came up to Kagome and asked her name.

"Follow me," the short woman said, turning and scampering away on white paws. Kagome followed her to a small table with only two chairs.

"Your sponsor: Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Lands," the demon said. Then she was gone, moving on to seat the next student. Kagome stood, frozen, staring at her sponsor. He looked up to her, and raised an eyebrow.

"Please, girl, sit down," he said. Swallowing, Kagome did as she was told. Lord Sesshomaru leaned over the table towards her.

"Are you scared?" he asked. Kagome shook her head. Not scared, surprised. Sesshomaru had long, silvery white hair. He was the youkai on her dad's flash drive.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Inuyasha**

So, maybe she'd jumped the gun a little bit. At first glance, Kagome felt sure Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Lands was the boy in her dad's pictures. The white hair was a dead giveaway. Lord Sesshomaru's ears, however, weren't the dog ears on top of the boy's head. Instead he had human ears that were unusually pointed at the tips. Plus, Sesshomaru had purple markings on his cheeks and forehead, and those didn't show up in any of the pictures Kagome had. Her heart sank a little as she sat down across from the Youkai.

"Hello," she said, "I'm Higurashi Kagome, it's nice to meet you." Lord Sesshomaru inclined his head slightly towards her, but didn't speak. Kagome folded her hands in her lap, sitting in silence for a moment. She tried not to stare at her sponsor, but curiosity kept pulling her eyes back to him. He wore traditional japanese dress, and a white fur boa wrapped over a shoulder. The boa, strangely, seemed to move of its own accord.

Kagome jumped as someone put a plate down in front of her. She glanced up to see the same mouse demon holding a tray with a Sesshomaru's plate.

"Thank you," Kagome said quietly, picking up her knife and fork and preparing to eat. The mouse demon cleared her throat, and motioned towards the front of the room. Kagome looked, and saw a podium and microphone on a wooden stage. She put her utensils down as a short and stout youkai walked up the steps of the wooden stage and to the podium. He tapped the microphone, and most everyone in the crowd winced from the loudspeaker pop that followed.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry!" the youkai said. He chuckled, and stroked his beard, regarding the room.

"Welcome to the first official Sponsor Social. I hope everyone has found their seat well enough, and food is going around now." He paused, and cleared his throat. A youkai ran onstage with a glass of water and handed it to him. He took a sip from the glass and then put it down on the podium.

"Thank you Jiin," he said, "Now. Introductions. For those of you I haven't had the pleasure of meeting, I am Headmaster Myoga. It brings me great joy to see you all gathered here today, a short week into the start of our Interspecies Outreach Educational Program. Welcome to the Amity School. Students, you sit at the table with your sponsors. We in the program would like you to think of them not only as the youkai who pay for your education here, but as a resource to understand our society in the Sector. That's why we're hosting this lunch; to help students familiarize themselves with sponsors. Of course, I'm sure you're all hungry, so I'll wrap up quickly." The room chuckled politely, Kagome included. She noticed Sesshomaru didn't make a sound.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you," Headmaster Myoga continued, "You sponsors, for putting your faith and funds into this effort to connect with the rest of our world, and you students, for stepping into our small bit of that world and studying alongside us. Our first semester is a mere two months, shorter than either of our peoples are used to. However, two months is ample time to learn-not only about your subjects, but also your classmates." Headmaster Myoga paused, looking around the crowd with a genuine smile on his face. He placed his hands on the podium, leaning forward.

"And that's enough from me. Please; eat, talk, enjoy yourselves. Thank you," he said. Kagome joined the room in a round of applause, then turned back to her lunchmate. He had already picked up his utensils and started eating. Kagome followed suit, sneaking curious glances at him every few seconds.

A few minutes later, Lord Sesshomaru put his utensils down on the table.

"You like your classes?" he asked, suddenly. Caught off guard, Kagome forced down a half-chewed bite of chicken.

"I-sorry-Yes, I do," she said. Lord Sesshomaru made a satisfied noise. He clasped his hands in front of him, and cocked his head, observing Kagome. She swallowed, feeling pinned down by his gaze.

"...Thank you," she squeaked out.

"For what?"

"Well...for paying for me to be here," she said. Lord Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

"I have too much money and too little to spend it on," Lord Sesshomaru said, "And I owed Myoga a favor."

Kagome nodded, not sure how to respond.

"You want to be a journalist," Lord Sesshomaru said. It was more of a statement than a question, but Kagome nodded anyway.

"I do," she replied.

"Like your father?" Lord Sesshomaru asked. Kagome's eyes flicked up. He had picked up his utensils and was focused down on his food again.

"You've heard of my father?" Kagome asked.

"Briefly. He was here in the nineties, correct?" Kagome nodded.

"For awhile," she said, "But he came back when I was born." Lord Sesshomaru speared a piece of chicken on his fork, lifting it to his mouth. He paused, inches away from the bite, and his eyes focused back on Kagome.

"As Myoga said, I am to be a resource for you. You may contact me by messenger. Simply give them my name and they will know where to find me. I am, however, a very busy person. I'm sure most of your questions may be answered by your teachers and supervisors. That is all." Lord Sesshomaru stuck the piece of chicken into his mouth and put his fork down, standing.

"You're leaving?" Kagome asked. He turned back to her.

"Do you have any urgent questions?" he asked. _Yes_ , Kagome _thought, so many_. But she bit her tongue and shook her head. She had no idea if her sponsor was at all trustworthy.

"Very well," Lord Sesshomaru said. He turned, walking away from the table and out of the building. Kagome noisily let out the breath she'd been holding, and sunk down in her seat, shoulders sagging. She kept forgetting how scary youkai could be. Lord Sesshomaru was a potent reminder.

Karin threw her arms around Kagome from behind, startling her.

"Geez, Karin!" Kagome snapped, wriggling out of her grasp. Karin just grinned, poking her in the arm.

"You know you love me," she said. Kagome turned to see a couple following in Karin's wake.

"Kagome, meet my sponsors: Mr. and Mrs. Iwasa. They're otter Youkai and they're the absolute best." Mrs. Iwasa held out a paw, which Kagome tentatively shook. The youkai's claws felt strong and sharp against her skin, and the fur tickled her palm. Mr. and Mrs. Iwasa were more otter-like than human, though they waddled around on back legs. Their entire bodies were furry, and the whiskers on their faces twitched with every change in expression. They wore traditional clothing, which looked odd on their animal bodies.

"Hello dear, we've heard so much about you," Mrs. Iwasa said. Kagome flushed a little, pulling her hand away.

"All good things, I hope," she replied. Mr. and Mrs. Iwasa chuckled like it was the first time they'd heard the joke.

"Guess what?" Karin said.

"What?"

"I'm going to stay the night in the city!" Karin said, "The Iwasas just invited me." Kagome raised her eyebrows.

"I thought we weren't allowed to stay out after dark," she said.

"By ourselves," Rin said, "With our sponsors it's totally fine. Wanna come with? I'm sure it'd be okay." Kagome glanced at the furry Iwasas, then back to Karin

"I dunno," she said, "I've got a lot of homework and I'm really tired." Karin pouted a bit, but shrugged.

""Kay," she replied, "I guess I'll see you and Sango tomorrow." Kagome nodded. They said their goodbyes, then Kagome headed back to the dorm by herself. Sango was still chatting with her sponsors, and Kagome wanted to be gone before she got back to the dorm.

Kagome gripped the strap of her purse tightly as she approached the campus gate. She felt like she was doing something she shouldn't be, and she couldn't decide if it was thrilling or terrifying. It would be her first time off campus since they arrived in the Sector. She was headed out to look for her mystery Youkai.

The demon at the guard post checked her name in the system, then let her through the small side door in the wall.

"Be back before sunset," he reminded her gruffly. Tense, Kagome nodded.

"I will," she squeaked. Then she turned on her heel and walked into the city. She didn't relax until she'd turned the corner and was completely unsupervised.

She paused for a moment, turning in a slow circle to examine her surroundings. She looked up, relishing in the head-spinning height of the buildings. The streets were not overly crowded like some of the cities she'd visited outside the sector, but youkai strolled casually down the cobblestone paths, giving her curious glances as they passed. Kagome caught a chubby demon staring and smiled at him. He jumped a little, and walked briskly on his way.

Kagome wasn't sure _where_ to start looking for her demon, but she knew she had to start. This street was as good as any. She started walking, peering curiously into shops and sneaking glances at the youkai around her. She was surprised to find herself feeling rather comfortable alone on the street. No one seemed to pay her too much mind. The anonymity of the crowd lulled her, let her forget the dorm and classes, where she was constantly surrounded by people who could so easily judge her. People who wanted to know what she was doing, and why she was doing it.

A shop caught her attention. It looked like a mystic shop, with crystals and incense in the windows, and a small Buddha statue sitting outside the door, serving as a door stop. She stepped inside, curious what mystic baubles interested demons.

As Kagome passed through the door, a large black bird to her right squawked loudly and right in her ear. She jumped back, letting out a squeaky yelp.

"Don't go scarin' the customers!" a female voice from the back of the shop yelled.

"Sorry!" Kagome replied. There was a moment of silence, then a shuffling sound. A white-haired woman popped her head out from the back room.

"Not you, girl," she said, "That goddamned bird." She glared at the bird.

"I oughta cook you up," she snapped at it. The bird gave a quieter squawk and ruffled its feathers. Watching it, Kagome's eyes widened. She hadn't realized before, but the bird had three red eyes in its head.

"It's a Carrion Crow," the woman said, noticing Kagome's gaze. She squinted her eyes at Kagome, then reached into her hair and fished out a pair of thick glasses.

"You aren't one of them human students, are ya?" she asked. Kagome tensed.

"My name is Higurashi Kagome," she replied. The old woman scrutinized her a moment more, then broke out into raspy laughter.

"Kami, a human girl in the sector-in my shop! Never thought I'd see the day-and I've got a lot of days yet, Ms. Higurashi." Kagome let out a breath.

"I like your shop," she said, "It's quite-"

"Don't touch that!" the old woman said as Kagome reached out to touch a black crystal. Kagome snatched her hand back, looking between the woman and the crystal, bewildered. The woman chuckled a little and plucked a pink crystal from the shelf beside her. She walked over and handed it to Kagome.

"Stick with the pretty ones, dear. Ugly stones mean ugly curses," she said. Kagome's eyes widened again.

"Curse?"

"Yup, and plenty of them. Old Kunko's got a lifetime's worth of curses committed to memory. I-hold on." She reached out and dusted off a shelf a little.

"There we are," Kunko said, "That stone you were about to touch provides boil-filled skin to whoever comes in contact with it." Kagome looked back to the stone, horrified.

"What about this one?" she asked, holding up the pink. Kunko chuckled.

"Just for decoration. Much safer for you humans," she replied. Kagome let out a breath, and placed the stone on a random shelf. She followed Kunko as the old youkai woman tottered around the shop, dusting shelves and rearranging merchandise.

"Can I help you find anything?" Kunko asked as they went.

"I'm just looking," Kagome replied.

"Fair enough," Kunko said, "Let me know when it finds you." Kagome looked at her, confused.

"When what finds me?"

"Whatever you're looking for. No one comes into this shop without finding what they seek. Although, sometimes what they find can take them completely by surprise," Kunko said. She gave Kagome a wink, then disappeared into the back of the shop, behind a beaded curtain. Kagome watched where she'd left, eyes narrowed. When Kunko didn't reappear, she continued to meander around the shop, being careful to keep her hands to herself. Unfortunately, she tripped over her own feet and went flying forward, only barely catching herself on a shelf before hitting the ground. Pulling herself up, she found herself at eye-level with a sheathed sword. It was a simple katana, clearly an antique. The handle was wrapped in faded grey cloth, and the sheath was a dull black. The once-bronze tsuba and kashira were rusted. All the same, Kagome felt herself reach out and grasp the handle. She picked up the sword delicately, turning it over in her hands. Absently she reminded herself to keep her hands to herself. Still, she didn't put the sword down. Instead she pulled gently at the handle, and the blade slid out from the sheath. It was old, rusted, with nicks all down both sides.

The Carrion Crow squawked, pulling Kagome out of her reverie. She pushed the sword back into the sheath quickly, and made to place it back on the shelf.

"Would you like that sword?" Kunko asked from behind her. Kagome jumped. She hadn't heard the woman approach. She whirled around, clutching the sword to her chest with both hands.

"Oh, I-I couldn't possibly-" she said, stuttering. Finally she found her voice: "I can't pay for something this valuable." She should've said she didn't even want the sword. What was she going to do with a sword?

"Nonsense," Kunko said. She put a hand on Kagome's elbow and pulled her over to the counter.

"You'll notice that nothing in the shop is marked with prices. That's because I don't price based on the item, I price based on the customer."

"What?" Kunko walked behind the counter and pulled out a shallow wooden box. Inside were a set of chicken bones. Oh dear, Kagome thought, she is crazy. Kunko gathered the bones in her hand, shook them up, then threw them down into the box again. She leaned over it, her face wrinkled in concentration. Then a wide smile spread across her lips.

"All I require from you, my dear, is a single strand of hair. Then the sword is yours, to do with whatever you will."

"You want my hair?"

" _A_ hair, no more."

Hesitantly, Kagome reached up to her head. She winced as she pulled a hair out by the root and handed it over. Kunko wrapped the hair around her fingers, examining it closely. She muttered something under her breath-Kagome thought she might have said 'strange'. Then she smiled and tucked the hair into her pocket.

"Thank you, dear," she said, "have a nice day."

Then Kagome was walking out of the shop, sword in hand. She stopped, blinking. She looked down at her hands.

"Why did I…" she mumbled aloud to herself.

And then she noticed it was almost dark.

"Crap!" She started walking quickly back towards the gate...then stopped. She looked around. She wasn't quite sure where she was.

"Shit…"

Kagome power walked down the dark streets, scolding herself the entire time.

"Go into a magic demon shop, that's a good idea. Dumb, dumb, dummy! Buy an old sword with my hair? What part of that is normal? Get stuck out after dark, then get eaten by demons. Serves me right!" She stopped at yet another corner, trying to decide which way to go. At this point she could spin around with her eyes closed and point to find her way, and make just as much progress. Sighing, she decided to make another left and started walking again.

As Kagome sped up, she heard the faint sound of footsteps start to echo behind her. A chill went down her spine.

"Oh please, drama queen," she muttered to herself, ignoring the footsteps behind her. But when they'd followed her around two more turns, she started to feel a little uneasy. She glanced over her shoulder, and saw someone in a dark outfit and hat walking behind her. Trying to calm herself, she started to walk a little faster. So did the person behind her. She slowed down. So did the person behind her.

Suddenly Kagome felt herself grow angry. Who did this person think they were? She whirled around, putting her hands on her hips.

"What?" she called to the figure, "What do you want?" The figure stopped. Then it started walking again, approaching her. Kagome steeled herself, willing herself not to turn and run. She was in the middle of the Youkai Sector, facing down a possible demon after dark.

The figure stopped a few feet away from her.

"Well?" she demanded, trying to keep all fear out of her voice. Suddenly the figure lunged out her. Kagome yelped as it-he?-knocked her to the ground. Her head hit the cobblestone, hard, sending her brain into a tornado of scattered thoughts. Kagome tried to kick at him, but her blows seemed to have no effect. She prepared to scream, and was about to, when suddenly the figure's weight disappeared from her.

When Kagome woke up, she found herself in an unfamiliar bed. In an instant, she jerked awake and jumped to her feet. She examined herself quickly for any injuries, but found only the big bump on the back of her head. Other than that, not one stitch of clothing seemed out of place.

She left the bedroom carefully, looking to either side of the hallway for people. She wasn't sure if she was checking for someone to give her an explanation, or someone she had to run away from. But there was no one in the hallway, so she stepped out and started to wander.

"Ms. Higurashi," a familiar voice said. Kagome froze, then turned. Lord Sesshomaru was standing in the hallway behind her, a disapproving look on his face. Of course, he always had a mildly disapproving face, so she wasn't sure if he was actually annoyed with her.

"Lord Sesshomaru! What happened? I remember-"

"Staying off campus after sunset?" Lord Sesshomaru cut in. Okay, he was definitely annoyed with her. Kagome sucked in a breath.

"I didn't mean to," she said, "It just kind of happened. I was in this shop and-oh! I bought a sword. Do you know where it went?"

"Yes. I have it."

Kagome waited for him to say something more, but he didn't.

"Can I have it back?" She asked.

"No," Lord Sesshomaru said, "Humans girls shouldn't play with swords. It could get you into trouble. You're lucky you were found and brought here. I've contacted the school and they know you are safe. Go back to sleep, I'll have a servant take you back to campus in the morning." Kagome felt herself flush a little. He was talking to her like a child.

"I bought that sword," she said, "You can't take it from me." Lord Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

"I already did," he said. Kagome clenched her fists by her side, her anger rising again. Then she remembered this was her sponsor, and struggled to keep a lid on it. Biting back an obnoxious comment, she said simply:

"Goodnight, then." Lord Sesshomaru nodded and turned, walking down the hall and around the corner. Kagome waited until he was out of sight, then let out an angry moan and punched the wall. Then she yelped and cradled her hand, all the anger rushing out of her at the feeling of the pain.

"Well that was dumb…" she said to herself.

"I could'a told you that," a new voice said. Kagome jumped and whirled around, facing a new person a few yards down the hall.

"Who are you?" she demanded. The boy, tan with long dark hair, scoffed and crossed his arms.

"None of your business," he said, "And you could at least say thank you. If it wasn't for me you'd be demon food by now." Kagome's shoulders relaxed a little.

"You helped me? When that guy-"

"Yeah," the boy said, "He was a wimp. Ran away after I knocked him down." Kagome looked down at the boy's hands and noticed he had reddish welts on his knuckles.

"That looks painful," she said, "Can I-"

"It'll be fine by morning," the boy said, shoving his hands down in his pockets to hide the injuries.

"Thank you," Kagome said. The boy leaned back, seemingly a bit surprised.

"You're welcome," he replied. Then he turned to leave.

"Wait!" Kagome said, "You-I mean, are you a human?" The boy stiffened, then looked over his shoulder at her.

"I'm Inuyasha," he replied. Then he hunched his shoulders and walked down the hall away from her. Reluctantly, Kagome returned to the bedroom. She curled up in the large, comfy bed, waiting for sleep to come so she didn't have to be so confused anymore.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: In the Wake of a Dream**

"Where were you?" Sango demanded when Kagome walked into their dorm room. Kagome ducked past her, collapsing onto her bed with a sigh. She was tired. She was cranky. She was mad at Lord Sesshomaru. And maybe-just maybe-she was a little mad at herself too.

"Kagome!"

"What? I was staying in town with my sponsor," Kagome snapped. Sango drew back from her, jaw stiff and lips pursed. She narrowed her eyes at Kagome.

"You could have told me," Sango said, voice curt. Kagome propped herself up on her elbow.

"Sango, you're my roommate, not my mom," she said. Sango's eyebrows softened up at the center, then hardened again. She turned away from Kagome, shoulders tense. Kagome beat back her instant regret, defending her words to her own conscience.

That's how their first weekend in the Youkai Sector started. And that's how Kagome found herself sitting alone in the common room. She was curled up in one of the comfy chairs, a textbook open but ignored in her lap. Instead of reading, she was staring off into space with her eyebrows drawn together ever so slightly.

She was thinking about the events of the night before, trying to piece together all her memories into a timeline that made sense. She'd gone to look for her demon. She went into a mystic shop. She traded a strand of her hair for an old sword. Then she was assaulted.

Assaulted. It was a weird word. It didn't feel right. She didn't feel like someone who'd been assaulted. Everything had happened so fast. Kagome raised her hand to brush her fingers against the bruise on the back of her head. She was surprised she didn't have a concussion. If it weren't for the dull pain she felt every time she touched her head, she would've thought it was all a dream.

"Kagome?" Kagome looked up to see Ina standing in front of her. She dropped her hand back into her lap.

"Is everything okay?" Ina asked. Kagome nodded.

"Yeah, just reading for a class. It's a hard chapter," she said. Ina glanced down at the book, then back up to Kagome's face.

"That's all?" she pressed, her large brown eyes locking with Kagome's. Kagome felt a chill go down her spine. Coolness spread through her, like water poured over her head. She blinked.

"Yes," she said, hoping her tone was firm. Ina stood-Kagome hadn't even realized she'd leaned down-and took a step back.

"My door's always open," she said. It was the same phrase she'd used the first day of classes. Kagome nodded, hoping her face didn't betray her reluctance. Ina lingered for a moment more, then turned and left her to herself. Within moments, Kagome was once again off in space.

Who was Inuyasha? Why was he in Lord Sesshomaru's house? And those were just two of the many questions Kagome had. Her head was swimming with them. She leaned over the arm of her chair, grabbing a notebook from her bag. She started writing:

Where is the boy in the tree?

Who was the demon that (and she wrote with hesitation here) attacked me?

Who is Inuyasha?

How do I get that sword back?

She paused, again hesitating as the question forced itself out through her pen.

5\. What happened to dad?

"Damn, do we have homework for Monday?" someone said. Kagome jumped, snapping her notebook shut. She looked up and saw Tardy. Well, the boy who was tardy the first day of class.

"What? No. I don't know," she said, switching from one answer to the other quickly, finally landing on the truth.

"Knowing Ooturo, it'll be a pop quiz," Tardy muttered. He sat down next to Kagome, pulling a matching textbook from his bag.

"Wanna quiz each other?" he asked.

"Sure," Kagome said, flatly. Tardy didn't get the message.

"I'm Rokuro, by the way," he said, "In case you were wondering." Kagome suppressed a sigh and resigned herself to studying with Rokuro. Perhaps it was for the best. She had no leads, and schoolwork was some sort of distraction from the questions swirling in her head.

"I'm Kagome," she replied.

"Ummm...the Youkai clan that initiated the founding of the Sector," Kagome said. She and Rokuro sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the fireplace, facing each other while they studied. Rokuro scrunched up his face, trying to recall the answer to Kagome's very specific question.

"House of the West? What's-her-name, the crazy snake-killer lady. Right? Please tell me I'm right." He looked hopefully to Kagome, who tilted her notebook up just in case he was trying to cheat.

"Lady Inukimi of the West," she said, "NOT crazy snake-killer lady."

"She killed snakes, that's all I remember," Rokuro replied. His lip jutted out in what looked suspiciously like a pout. Kagome looked back to her notes, then nodded and tapped the page.

"She assassinated the royal family of a rival snake demon clan," she acquiesced.

"And then their clan killed her before she could make it to the Sector. Her son was the last blood relative, and he made it in," Rokuro added, eyes rolling up as he focused on remembering the lesson.

"Poor kid," Kagome commented, "All alone in here." Rokuro threw up his hands, laying back on the ground and letting his legs fly up in the air.

"I'm done," he said, "If I fail at this point, it's the will of the gods." Kagome scoffed.

"That's hardly a good attitude to have!" she scolded, closing up her notebook and stiffly pulling herself back up into a chair. She sighed happily as she sunk down into the comfortable cushions. Rokuro propped himself up on his elbows, craning his neck to look at her.

"Thanks for helping me," he said, "It's nice to have someone to talk to." Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"What about your roomate?" Rokuro grimaced and didn't answer.

"Where are those other girls you usually hang out with?" he asked instead.

"Sango and Karin? Karin's in town with her sponsors. Sango's...I dunno, napping or something." Rokuro nodded, seeming to mull something over. Kagome narrowed her eyes.

"Why so interested in Sango and Karin?" she asked. Rokuro made an innocent face.

"No reason!" he replied, his voice just a little too high to be inconspicuous. Kagome grinned.

"No?"

"No."

"I see."

"I'm glad to hear it," Rokuro replied, scrambling to his feet. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a thing to do...in a place...that's not here."

"Bye!" Kagome called as he power-walked away with a nervous step. She gathered her things and headed back to her room.

"Sango! Guess who's interested in you or Karin! I'm not sure which one of you it is yet, but I think I can get it out of him-" then Kagome remembered she and Sango were supposed to be mad at each other. It was something Sango clearly hadn't forgotten, considering she was laying in bed with her back to Kagome, shoulders tense. There was a moment of silence as Kagome tried to work out a recovery strategy, and in that moment she heard a curious sound. It seemed like...a sniffle? Coming from Sango? Slowly, as if walking up to a wild animal, Kagome approached her roommate.

"Sango?" she asked. Sango sat up and faced her, an emotionless mask drawn over her expressions.

"What?" she asked, voice flat.

"Were you...crying?" Kagome asked. She felt dumb for asking. Sango's red eyes and wet eyelashes made it obvious she was crying. Sango shook her head all the same.

"Oh," Kagome replied. She shuffled awkwardly in the middle of their room, looking down at the carpet instead of meeting Sango's eyes.

"I'm sorry for earlier," she said, quietly. She glanced up at Sango, and found the girl staring at her curiously. Kagome forced a smile onto her face, and flopped down next to Sango on the bed.

"You know that guy who was tardy for Ooturo's class the first day? He was asking about you and Karin." Sango frowned.

"Why would he be asking about us?" she asked. Kagome let out an exaggerated sigh.

"Where is Karin when you need her!?" she lamented, then grinned. Sango still looked confused. The grin faded from Kagome's face.

"I really am sorry," she said, "I was mean because I was mad."

"It's okay. It was silly of me to react that way," Sango replied.

"Sango...yesterday I went into town on my own. And I lost track of time. And I...there was this demon that was following me-" Sango's eyes widened, and suddenly Kagome had her undivided attention.

"If it weren't for this one guy...well, anyway, Sesshomaru let me stay the night and that's why I came back this morning. So, yeah, next time I'll ask you to go because I'm pretty sure you can scare off any demons for me." Kagome tried to end on a lighter note, but it came out sounding like an insult. Sango didn't seem to notice, though, and instead was watching Kagome intently.

"You...were attacked by a demon?"

"Attacked is a strong word-"

"Kagome!"

"Yes," Kagome said, "I was attacked." Sango watched her with horror clear on her face.

"But I'm fine!" Kagome added. Sango stood up, suddenly more passionate than Kagome had yet seen her.

"It's not fine! You were _attacked_. We're supposed to be _protected_. You-We have to tell someone!"

" _I'm_ fine," Kagome insisted. Sango paced back and forth in front of her, fingertips pressed to her furrowed brow.

"I don't get it," Sango said, "Why would you go by yourself? How did you lose track of time? I knew this was a dumb program, this was bound to happen to someone." She stopped suddenly, and sat down next to Kagome again.

"You should drop out," she said, grabbing Kagome's shoulder and staring intensely at her. Kagome stared back, eyes wide.

"Sango...I can't leave, I've got to-well I've got to pass my classes and stuff." Sango narrowed her eyes.

"Stop lying," she said, voice icy. Kagome drew herself up, scowling.

"You first!" she snapped. The girls glared at each other for a quiet moment. Then Sango looked away.

"Fine." she muttered. The scowl dropped from Kagome's face, replaced by surprise. She hadn't expected to win so quickly.

"But you have to come clean too," Sango said, "Deal?" Without hesitation, Kagome nodded.

"Deal."

"Okay."

Silence.

"So?" Kagome prodded.

"Hush, I'm thinking," Sango said, more anxious than angry. Kagome waited for her to be ready. After a minute, Sango looked back up to her.

"My parents aren't hiking guides-I mean, they give tours, but that's not their real job. They're demon slayers. My family has been youkai taijiya since before the feudal era." Sango said. Kagome's mouth dropped open a little. She wasn't sure what to say. She'd heard of taijiya, most people learned about them in history classes. She didn't think any were left, though. There weren't any demons in Japan left to slay. Plus, now that humans and demons were on good-ish terms, what was the point?

"My parents sent me here to keep an eye out for dangerous youkai that wanted to hurt humans. Looks like we already found one," Sango said. Kagome nodded.

"How did you really get that scar on your back?" she asked. Sango hesitated, but when she spoke Kagome knew it was the truth.

"Where I live-look, this is gonna sound crazy to you-where I live there are youkai living outside the Sector. They're a wolf clan, one of the oldest, and they refused to join the Sector when it was created. My ancestors made a deal with them. We'd keep their existence secret, they'd stay away from humans in nearby villages."

"There are youkai outside the sector?" Kagome asked, incredulous.

"Yes."

"...how many?"

"Not a lot. When I was a kid one went rogue and attacked humans. My parents took out a bunch of them," Sango said.

"So then your scar…?"

"Yeah. From the rogue wolf." Kagome nodded again. She felt a bit like a bobblehead. Her entire life she'd been told that all youkai lived in the Sector. Japan was safe from demons because they were bottled up offshore. But if one group of youkai were living outside...couldn't there be more? And if her dad had made enemies of demons…

"Your turn," Sango said. Kagome sucked in a breath. Right, her turn.

"Hold on," she muttered. She grabbed her laptop from her bed, and pulled her flashdrive from around her neck.

"What-?"

"Just a second, it'll make more sense for you to see it." Kagome pulled up the pictures on the flash drive and turned it towards Sango. Sango flipped through them, pausing on the picture of the crime scene.

"I don't get it, what am I looking at?" she asked.

"This belonged to my dad. He died in a car crash when I was young. Everyone says it was an accident, but I don't think it was. He was researching this demon before he died, and I'm here to find out what happened to him." Sango's eyes flicked between the laptop and Kagome's face. Kagome found herself staring hopefully at Sango. The weight of the secrets she'd been keeping were suddenly lessened. Just showing Sango the pictures made her feel like the world was a little bit easier to move through.

"Sounds like we're here for the same thing," Sango said. Kagome blinked.

"We are?"

"I want to track down dangerous youkai. You want to find the youkai that's responsible for your dad's death. Seems dangerous enough to me," Sango replied.

"Then you'll help me?" Kagome asked. Sango nodded curtly. Her brows were furrowed, her face business-like.

"It's what I'm here for," she said.

When Kagome walked into the library, she felt like she was home. The smell of paper and binding permeated the air, and the only sounds were whispery voices and the quiet shuffling of paper. Kagome looked up, and saw that bookshelves lined the walls of the library's tower. A spiral staircase climbed to the top of the tower, and each floor was open in the middle so she could see to the very top.

"Woah," Sango said, standing beside her.

"Yeah. I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier," Kagome replied.

"Where do we start?" They looked around for a librarian, or a computer catalogue, or something to get them on the right track.

"Good afternoon, ladies," someone said behind them. They turned to see Dr. Ooturo standing, waiting for them to move out of the library entrance.

"Sorry," Kagome said, and she and Sango moved further into the building.

"Can I help you find something?" Dr. Ooturo asked, "I'm quite familiar with the library." Kagome and Sango glanced at each other.

"Yes," Kagome replied, "At least, I hope so."

"We need a book on Inu youkai history," Sango said. Kagome glanced at her, surprised.

"Ah, doing some research on your sponsor?" Dr. Ooturo asked Kagome. Flustered, Kagome nodded.

"I would suggest Histories of the House of the West," Dr. Ooturo said, pointing them towards a bookshelf. They started to walk, but he stopped them.

"If you're worried about Lord Sesshomaru's stance on integration, don't take his past actions too heavily. A lot has changed since the Sector was founded." Kagome nodded quickly, and grabbed Sango's arm to pull her towards the shelf.

"Why are we looking at Inu youkai history?" she whispered to Sango.

"The boy in your pictures is a dog demon," Sango replied, "The hair and the ears are an obvious giveaway." Kagome frowned.

"Not everyone has special training in demon species," she muttered, pulling the recommended book from the shelf. Sango ignored her as they found a quiet nook among the first floor shelves. Sango ignored her.

"Lucky for us, dog demons are rare. Your youkai has to be in here somewhere," she said.

He was not in the book. At first they thought they'd skimmed over him. Then they read the book more closely, searching for any mention of a boy pinned to a tree. Finally Kagome snapped the big book shut.

"He's not here," she said. Sango shook her head.

"He has to be!" she replied.

"He's not. Plenty about Sesshomaru killing humans and waging battles, which is _so_ reassuring. But nothing about the guy in the picture. Damn it!" A few people looked over to them as Kagome raised her voice. Immediately she hushed.

"Come on, Sango," she said, "Let's go." Sango followed behind Kagome as she dropped the book off to be reshelved and left the library.

"What now?" Sango asked. Kagome was walking quickly ahead of her, and she had to jog a little to keep up.

"If dog demons are so rare, then Sesshomaru probably knows about my youkai," Kagome replied. Sango grabbed her arm, forcing her to slow down.

"Wait! What if the dog demon in the pictures was responsible for your dad's death? What if Sesshomaru's allied with him? He could kill you easily," Sango said.

"Gee, thanks," Kagome snapped.

"Kagome! We know he's not fond of humans, we just read all about it," Sango replied. This gave Kagome pause.

"Dr. Ooturo said a lot has changed," she replied, uncertainly.

"But how much?" Sango pressed. Kagome didn't reply. Sango continued, and her voice became a little gentler.

"It's almost dark, we can't go today," she said. Kagome sighed.

"You're right," she said, "And I don't know how much he's changed since those books were written. I need to meet with him again, to see if he can be trusted." Sango still looked apprehensive, but seemed to agree that this was a slightly better plan.

"Next Saturday," Sango said, "We'll go together." Kagome nodded. They started to move towards the dorm again, walking slowly. Kagome felt exhausted, emotionally and physically. But she didn't feel hopeless, and that was something. It felt right to have Sango there with her, to have someone she could trust.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: The Boy From the Pictures**

Tuesday. _Four days until we talk to Lord Sesshomaru_ , Kagome thought to herself. She sat in her Ethics in Media class, trying and failing to focus on the lecture. Usually she was dutifully taking notes, but today she would scribble a word every now and then. The rest of the time she was thinking about what she would ask Sesshomaru. What excuse would she give for coming to see him? He'd probably see right through it, whatever it was.

Karin and Rokuro were waiting for Kagome outside the building after class.

"You ready?" Karin asked.

"Huh?"

"Archery tryouts," Rokuro supplied. In the past few days Kagome had made sure to invite him to meals and walking to class with her friends. He'd quickly found himself comfortable in the group-comfortable enough to flirt with Sango. Kagome couldn't decide if he was brave or stupid. Sango didn't take kindly to being called a rare flower.

It was Rokuro who first mentioned the archery tryouts for the women's team. Karin immediately wanted to try, despite never having picked up a bow in her life. And if Karin was going, so were Sango and Kagome.

"I'm still not sure about this," Kagome said, "I haven't shot since middle school."

"No backing out!" Karin said. She hooked her arm around Kagome's elbow and started dragging her along towards the archery field.

Kagome and Karin found Sango in the line of girls warming up for tryouts. Rokuro hung back with a few other students, watching them get ready. Kagome noted that Sango looked more relaxed than she'd been since they met. She wore an athletic tank and leggings, and was currently stretching out her shoulders. The clothes looked right on her, and when she picked up the bow it seemed to fit perfectly between her fingers. She tested the tension of the string and nodded.

"I like these demon bows," she said, "Never felt anything like them." Kagome felt her nerves twist tighter. She was going to look like an idiot next to demon slayer Sango. A twinge of jealousy startled her, and she smothered the feeling, ashamed of herself.

"Ladies, let's get started!" Kagome looked up to see a tall demon woman-the coach- standing at the end of the line of girls. She pointed to the row of targets across the field.

"Line up, and let's start shooting. Three arrows for everyone. The best shots make the team." Simple enough. Kagome and Karin followed Sango, starting a line at one of the standing quivers. Glancing at the girls in the other lines, Kagome saw an assortment of humans and demons. She met the eyes of a tiger-striped demoness who grinned toothily, and found herself looking back down to her feet. There was no way she was making a demon archery team. When all the girls had found a line, the coach shouted:

"Draw!" In near unison, the girls at the front of the lines took an arrow from the quiver and notched it on the string, pulling it back.

"Release!" With a series of twangs and whistles, the arrows flew through the air above the field. Many fell short of the targets altogether, burying themselves in the grassy ground. Some flew beyond the targets into a grove of trees beyond. Still, quite a few hit the targets. Sango's flew nearly to the center.

"Draw," the coach called. The front row of girls notched their arrows and prepared to let them fly.

"Release." More arrows hit the targets this time. Once again, Kagome's nerves tempted her to back out. She couldn't remember anything her middle school coach had told her. She quit archery for the school newspaper, and hadn't looked back in years.

"Draw." Bows bent as the girls pulled the arrows into place.

"Release." Strings hummed and the arrows thudded into place. All three of Sango's arrows were clustered near the bullseye, but none of them quite hit center. She scowled.

"Damn, I'm rusty," she said. Kagome swallowed a nervous laugh. Sango stepped away from the quiver and handed the bow back to Karin. The rest of the lines were similarly switching off. Karin's three shots fell short of the target. It was pretty clear she'd never tried archery before, but she wasn't alone among the group of girls trying out. Some of the poorest shots were demons, which surprised Kagome. She had assumed all demons had some knowledge of fighting and weaponry, but it seemed she was wrong. Then, before she was ready, it was Kagome's turn to shoot. She stepped up to the quiver and pulled an arrow, preparing for the coach's command.

"Draw!" the coach called. Kagome gave a quick prayer to muscle memory, then raised the bow and drew the arrow back on the string. She felt the once-familiar tension in her arms and shoulders, and suddenly wished she'd stretched out like Sango. Nearly holding her breath, she focused on raising her elbow and pulling the arrow back correctly. She couldn't quite figure out how to aim, but remembered to raise the arrow a little higher than she thought it had to be.

"Release!" Startled, Kagome let the arrow fly. It arced through the air, straight towards the target, then buried itself in one of the wooden legs. Kagome let out a breath. She was a little disappointed. For a moment she thought she might hit the target. Then the coach called draw, and she grabbed another arrow.

This time she forced herself to breathe. She raised the bow a little higher than before.

"Release!"

Eyes closing the moment before she released, Kagome let the arrow go. The tension of the bow carried it forward and it whistled as it flew. A couple people gasped behind her. Kagome opened her eyes. Her arrow was buried in the center of the target, a perfect bullseye.

"Draw!" Kagome nearly missed the command, and scrambled to ready herself. Once again, she forced herself to keep breathing as she lined up the shot. Suddenly she remembered archery practices from her early teen years. Her coach would walk down the line, correcting a foot placement here and a low elbow there. Kagome turned her shoulders just slightly, opening up her chest. She twisted her wrist, pulling the bow up straighter.

"Release!" Her arrow flew across the field and, once again, buried itself in the center of the target. A couple people whispered behind her. No one else had gotten a single bullseye, let alone two in a row. Kagome looked back to Sango and Karin. Karin had her hands clasped in front of her in excitement. Sango looked a little sulky.

"You're pretty good." Kagome jumped, and turned to face the coach. She tried to summon words, but none came.

"I...uh…"

"What's your name?"

"Ka-Kagome-I mean, Higurashi Kagome."

"I'll be in touch, Higurashi." Kagome nodded, then quickly handed her bow off to the next girl and walked over to Sango, Karin, and Rokuro.

"That was amazing!" Karin gushed.

"I didn't know you could shoot," Sango added. Rokuro elbowed her.

"Jealous, my rose?" he teased. Sango elbowed him back, hard. Rokuro's hand flew to his side, and he laughed through the pain.

"I was pretty good in middle school," Kagome said, "Always felt natural, you know?" From the looks on their faces, they didn't know.

"Anyway," Kagome continued, "I think I got lucky. It's been a long time."

"Bull," Rokuro said, "That wasn't luck, that was skill." Kagome blushed.

"Come on guys, let's get going," she said. She felt awkward, being the center of attention. And she wasn't sure she wanted to be on the archery team. It would only distract her from her investigation. She had six weeks left to find her youkai and get some answers. Even if archery came naturally, that didn't mean she had to do it.

Wednesday. _Three days until we talk to Lord Sesshomaru_.

Kagome wasn't sure how anyone could give a boring lecture on dragons, but her World Youkai teacher was succeeding at that very task. She glanced at Rokuro. His eyelids were starting to droop. Every few seconds they would flutter shut and he'd open them really wide, as if it would help him stay awake.

"Psst." Kagome looked to her left, seeing the tiger demon from archery tryouts. She leaned over her desk, regarding Kagome with golden-green slitted eyes.

"Higurashi, right?" she asked. Kagome glanced at the teacher, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Yeah," she said, "What's your name?"

"Tamao. You think you'll make the team?" Again, Kagome looked at the teacher before she answered.

"I dunno, I don't really have time for it," she said. Tamao stared at her, eyes wide.

"What? But you're so good! Especially for a human. I haven't seen anyone shoot like that since before the Sector went up."

"You were around before the Sector?" Kagome asked. Tamao nodded.

"I was just a cub. We were traveling to the sector and we went through this little village with a holy priestess. She shot like you do, eyes closed right when she lets the arrow-"

The teacher cleared his throat. Kagome and Tamao turned to see him staring at them.

"Anything you'd like to share?" he asked. Kagome and Tamao shook their heads in unison. The teacher turned around and went back to droning about the properties of dragon scales in classical medicine. Tamao leaned over and whispered:

"Seriously, you're good." Then she leaned back to her seat and started taking sparse notes. Kagome felt pride warm her at Tamao's compliment.

After class, Rokuro and Kagome walked back to the human dorm together.

"See, I don't understand why demons hunted down all the dragons. It's not like they were challenging any major demon families," Rokuro said, "And now we have no dragons! It's just not fair, if you ask me." Kagome shook her head.

"Rokuro, you have mixed up priorities," she teased. As they neared the dorm, they saw a figure standing outside the doors. At first Kagome paid him no mind, but as they got closer she was able to make out his hair. Silver hair. Rokuro continued to ramble on about dragons, not realizing Kagome was no longer paying attention. She was too busy staring at the youkai from her dad's pictures.

The demon standing beside the door was staring right at Kagome. Eyes locked, they drew closer to each other. He watched her suspiciously, shoulders tense as he held a paper-wrapped object in his hands. Kagome felt her breaths become short and shallow. Was he dangerous? Would he attack her out in the open?

Rokuro finally noticed Kagome wasn't paying attention, and waved his gloved hand in front of her face, startling her. She slapped at his hand.

"What's wrong?" Rokuro asked, following her gaze to the silver-haired youkai. Kagome continued walking towards him without answering Rokuro.

"Kagome?" he asked after her.

They reached her youkai, Rokuro repeating her name questioningly the whole way there. His gaze flicked from her to the demon and back, unsure of what was happening.

"Here," the youkai said gruffly, holding the paper package out to Kagome. Her brow furrowed.

"What?" she said. The youkai scoffed, and it was a familiar sound.

"Take it. Fluffy stole it from you, and it didn't seem right...so I brought it back." Kagome reached out and took the package. She unwrapped the paper at one end and found it was the sword Lord Sesshomaru had taken from her.

"Wait, you're that boy! Inuyasha!" she exclaimed. He smirked.

"Duh, wench," he said, "Who else would I be?" Kagome's mind reeled.

"But you were-" Inuyasha cut her off, voice harsh.

"Yeah, yeah, just keep quiet about it. Anyway, I'm leaving. See you never," he said.

"Wait!" Kagome reached out and grabbed his arm. Immediately he tensed up. Next thing she knew, her wrists were being held above her head and their faces were inches away. Kagome sucked in a breath and held it, suddenly scared of the fierce look in Inuyasha's eyes.

"I said, keep quiet about it, understand?" he growled at her. Slowly she nodded.

"Let her go!" Rokuro yelled from behind Kagome, making a grab at Inuyasha's arm. He dodged Rokuro's grab easily. A minute later he was gone, run off back to the city streets.

"What was that about?" Rokuro demanded, "Do you know that demon?"

"I have to talk to Sango," Kagome muttered. She ran into the dorm, leaving Rokuro to trail confusedly behind.

"-tell Ina about him, he attacked you!" Rokuro exclaimed as they walked into Kagome's room. Sango looked up immediately.

"What happened?" she asked. Rokuro stood close behind Kagome.

"She ran into this demon outside and he-"

"He didn't attack me!"

"He did!" Rokuro insisted. Sango stood and walked over to them.

"Was he…?" she asked softly. Rokuro furrowed his brow, glancing between Kagome and Sango confusedly. Kagome shook her head.

"No. He was the guy that saved me," she said. She held up the paper-wrapped sword.

"He came to give me this." Sango took the sword, pulling the paper from it carefully. Her hands held the sheath gingerly as she reached for the hilt. She pulled the sword from the sheath and held it up to the light. The blade was as Kagome remembered, nicked and rusty. But by the way Sango was examining the sword, it wasn't simply a useless blade.

"What the hell is that?" Rokuro asked, a little breathless. Sango and Kagome turned to look at him. They had completely forgotten he was in the room.

"That's not a normal sword, what's wrong with it?" Rokuro asked. His shoulders were tense, gloved hand fisted at his side.

"It's a demon blade," Sango said. She gave it a swing, testing the balance. She shook her head.

"It's strange," she said, "It feels perfectly balanced, but it doesn't look like it could be in this condition." She sheathed the sword and handed it back to Kagome.

"Why do you have a demon sword?" Rokuro demanded. Kagome ignored him, instead leaning in to whisper to Sango.

"He's the boy in the pictures," she said. Sango leaned back, eyes wide. Kagome nodded.

"Stop!" Rokuro shouted from behind them, making them both jump.

"What is going on!?" He asked, just as loud. Kagome shushed him, and Sango glared.

"Then tell me-" Sango jumped up and slapped her hand over his mouth.

"Shut up," she hissed, "And we'll tell you."

So they told Rokuro everything. About Sango's family, and Kagome's dad, and the human boy who'd rescued her and was now a youkai. When they were done, Rokuro just nodded.

"Okay," he said. Sango and Kagome exchanged glances.

"That's all?" Sango asked. Rokuro met her eyes and smiled.

"Makes sense to me," he said, "I'm in." He stood, putting a hand to his chin and starting to pace the small distance of their room.

"What doesn't make sense is how you see this Inuyasha fellow as a human, then as a youkai. Was he wearing a glamour?" Kagome shrugged.

"I dunno. I don't see why he would," she said. Rokuro nodded sagely, and continued to pace. Kagome looked to Sango, who seemed to be considering something carefully before she said it.

"What?" Kagome asked.

"It's impossible," Sango said.

"What's impossible?" Rokuro asked. Sango shifted uncomfortably on her bed. She glanced over to the sword Kagome was holding, then to Rokuro, then down to her hands.

"There are stories about those with demon blood turning human. They've been passed down through my family for centuries." Rokuro was about to speak, but Kagome put a hand on his arm, stopping him. Sango needed to speak at her own pace here.

"Back when humans and demons lived in proximity," she said, "Sometimes they...mingled. They could have children. Hanyous."

"Half human, half demon?" Rokuro asked. Sango nodded.

"There's a story about a Hanyou turning human. That's how my ancestors killed her. She was incredibly powerful most of the time, except for once a year. Her powers were fueled by sunlight. On the shortest day of the year, she turned human. They tracked her for three years, and on the third year they found her in her human time and killed her," Sango said.

"You're telling me there's a hanyou in modern Japan?" Rokuro asked. Sango shrugged.

"It doesn't seem possible. Most of them were killed off by demons when they tried to enter the Sector," she replied.

"And yet…" Rokuro trailed off. He and Sango looked to Kagome. Her face was set in determination.

"I have to talk to Inuyasha," she said, "Hanyou or not."

Thursday. _Two days until we talk to Inuyasha_.

Rokuro and Sango had managed to talk Kagome out of tracking Inuyasha down that day. They didn't know enough, they argued, and showing up to Sesshomaru's mansion unannounced was probably a bad idea. Reluctantly, Kagome agreed. She would send a messenger on Thursday to let Sesshomaru know they were coming. She just had to get through one Friday class and her first archery practice. Then she could get some answers.

She dropped her books off in her room, then headed out of the dorm to find a messenger at the campus gates.

"Kagome!" Kagome skidded to a halt as Ina called after her. She turned, trying to look innocent.

"Yes Ms. Ina?" she said. Ina raised an eyebrow.

"Can we talk?" she asked. She motioned to her open office door. Kagome glanced nervously at the office.

"I was just…" she saw the firm look on Ina's face, "...yeah, I've got a few minutes. Ma'am." They entered Ina's office and sat down in a couple comfy chairs around a coffee table. Ina offered Kagome a cup of water. Trying to be polite, Kagome accepted. Then Ina leaned back in her chair and knitted her fingers together, watching Kagome with a critical eye.

"Your professors say you're a dedicated student," Ina said. Kagome wasn't sure how to respond, so she simply nodded.

"I like school," she replied, feeling dumb.

"And you're on the archery team. That's quite impressive."

"I played in middle school," Kagome said. Ina narrowed her eyes.

"Is anything bothering you, Kagome?" she asked. Kagome shook her head. Ina nodded, and took a sip of her water. Kagome copied her movement.

"Kagome," Ina said, seeming suddenly more open, "I am a fox demon, as I'm sure you know. Sometimes-not often, but sometimes-our kind have the ability to...tune in to the emotions of the people around us. This is why Myoga asked me to take on this position. I know something is bothering you, but I don't know what. And I don't like being in the dark about these things." She took another sip of water. Kagome clutched her own cup between her hands, gaze fixed on the water inside. For a minute, Ina didn't speak. When Kagome chanced a look up, Ina was watching her intently. Kagome sucked in a breath, and let it out slowly.

"Ms. Ina," she said, "I-"

"Don't lie," Ina cut in, her voice sharp. Damn. It was exactly what Kagome was about to do. She took a deep breath and started again.

"I'm working on a story," she said, "About my dad's work in the Youkai sector when he was a reporter. He died, a long time ago." She looked up at Ina, who was regarding her suspiciously.

"And that's the truth," Kagome ended. Ina cocked her head to the side.

"But not the whole truth," she said. Kagome shook her head.

"No, it's not," she said. Ina pursed her lips. She stood, walking over to her office door and opening it. She motioned out into the hall. Kagome stood, putting her cup of water down on the coffee table and leaving Ina's office.

"I'm keeping an eye on you," Ina warned as she left. Kagome paused, looking up at the fox demon.

"I know," she replied.

She wasn't sure she breathed until she was out of the dorm and halfway to the campus gate.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: Unwelcome Changes**

Friday. Finally.

Fridays were always exciting. They marked the end of the week and beginning of the weekend. Usually on Fridays, Kagome would leave early from club meetings, letting the newspaper staff finish up preparations for printing on their own. They were plenty competent. She would walk home, get a snack and watch cartoons with her brother until he had to go to soccer, then read or watch Youtube videos until dinner. Fridays weren't days for doing homework, or thinking about her dad's car crash, they were days for relaxing. Laying in bed more than she should. Spending too much time scrolling through Facebook and Pinterest feeds.

But this Friday was especially exciting. It meant that tomorrow she was finally going to get some answers. After her class was over, she hurried back to the dorm and changed into athletic clothing. Then she met Sango at their first archery practice. When she walked onto the field, the other girls who made the team were huddled in a few small circles. She saw Tamao with a couple other demons and waved a quick hello before joining Sango on the outskirts of the group.

"Hey," Kagome said. Sango 'hmm'd at her in greeting. She seemed completely at ease on the field, which was an unusual mood to find her in. Kagome was the opposite. She knew it was dumb, but she felt like she had something to prove after her performance at tryouts. Two bullseyes in a row could've been a fluke, right?

Kagome ran her hands over her legs, wishing she had some pockets to bury her hands in. She settled on crossing her arms tightly over her chest.

"You okay?" Sango asked.

"Just nervous," Kagome replied. She glanced at the stands overlooking the field. A surprising number of spectators had gathered on them, sitting together in clumps and waiting for the practice to start. Very nervous, Kagome thought to herself.

Coach called all the girls over, and told them that they'd be working on form today. Each girl had a spot on one side of the field, a target on the other side, and a quiver of arrows to shoot with. When they lined up, Kagome noticed Tamao take a spot next to her. Sango was on the other side. Tamao grinned toothily and waved a clawed hand.

"Can't wait to see what you can do," she said quietly. Kagome gave her a weak smile. Very, very nervous, indeed.

"Okay, everyone draw," Coach said. She called for release when all the girls had set themselves, and a volley of arrows flew across the field. Kagome's hit the target, but not even close to center. She noticed that Sango's arrow was much closer than her own.

"By the end of the day, I want you to beat that shot. Don't look at anyone else, just focus on your target. Again, draw!" She didn't call for release right away. Curious, Kagome looked away from the tip of her arrow to see what was going on. Coach was talking to the girl at the end of the line, pushing the girl's shoulders, arms, and hips into a better position. She motioned to the girl, who released her arrow. It went flying, and landed about an inch closer to the center of her target than her last. Coach clapped a hand on her shoulder.

"Good," she said, "Keep at it. See how close you can get just thinking about form. Aim for center every time." Then she moved on to the next girl in the line and gave her the same individual assessment. Tamao went to lower her bow, but Coach called out for them to keep the weapons pulled taut. Kagome struggled against the urge to relax her muscles and disarm herself. Instead she tried to relish the burn in her arms, reminding herself that the uncomfortable sensation was what would make her stronger.

Another sensation began to flood Kagome's mind, overpowering the feeling of her muscles crying for rest. Someone was watching her. She wasn't sure how she knew, but she was confident she was right. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and a chill went down her spine. She risked a glance behind her, towards the stands where people watched their practice. Her eyes scanned the crowd. Rokuro was there, but he was watching Coach move down the line. There wasn't- Kagome's breath caught as she spotted a figure at the edge of the stands. He waited in the shadow of the bleachers, his face hidden by the darkness. But Kagome could see the outline of his shoulder and chest, and the tips of his shoes that peeked out into the harsh line of sunlight at his feet. She knew-once again, with inexplicable certainty-that this man was her attacker. She watched as he raised a hand and waved at her. Fear cut through her thoughts, and she whipped her head back around to look at the field. The distance between her and the targets seemed to grow and shrink all at once. She started to sweat. Her arms shook, the head of her arrow quivering in her vision. _Pathetic_.

Anger at her own weakness began to push Kagome's fear into a corner. She narrowed her eyes, grasping that anger and holding it close to her. You know who else she was angry at? The demon waving at her-waving at her!-from the shadows. How _dare_ he come here, the bastard? The anger started to sweep through her, searching for other targets. Sesshomaru. Asshole. Stole from her, put her down, and did it all without so much as an explanation. He deserved a piece of her mind, at the very least. And, of course, Inuyasha. Who the hell was he?

Kagome gripped her bow and arrow firmly. No longer paralyzed by fear, she found she was taking a truly _pathetic_ stance. If she fired her arrow now, it would _pathetically_ fall short. She threw the words at herself, anger once again turning inwards. Righting her form, she focused on the sharp end of her arrow. Ignoring everything else, she stared down the wooden shaft and imagined the whole world led to that point. Vaguely, she was aware of Coach coming towards her. It was her turn. Coach said something, but her ears didn't hear it. Instead she heard the blood rushing through her body, the beat of her heart, and the throb of something deep within her she had never felt before.

"Higurashi, I said release!" Coach said, her tone harsh. The girl in front of her didn't acknowledge her words. She was about to shout, when Kagome moved. Except Kagome didn't move, but something within her did.

The world turned upside down. Coach jumped back, her eyes widening. She shouted at the other demons on the team, screaming at them to get away. Kagome pulled her arm back just a little further, and let out an angry cry as she released her arrow. Pink light filled the immediate area, blinding anyone who was unlucky enough to see it. It fell across the field in waves, following in the wake of Kagome's arrow. Demons ran from the wave, but most were too slow in reacting. As the light passed over them, they fell to the ground, unconscious or nearly so. In the stands, Rokuro stood, not believing his eyes. A shadowy figure fled the light, unnoticed by all.

Kagome's arrow raced across the field and buried itself deep in the center of her target. It tore through the straw bullseye and pierced the wooden stand beneath. The crack of splitting wood reverberated back to the observers, and those able to watch saw the target fall to the ground, the stand split in two.

Kagome breathed heavily, standing at the epicenter of the chaos. Slowly, she lowered her bow to her side. The string had snapped, and the wood was scorched. She dropped the useless weapon to the ground. Her mind was numb, but thoughts were starting to seep back in.

"Kagome?" Sango asked. Slowly, Kagome turned her eyes to her friend. Then they searched beyond Sango's shocked face to the demons lying on the ground. Her brow furrowed, confused. Then her eyes rolled back in her head. Sango barely caught her before she fell.

When Kagome started to wake up, it was to the sound of Rokuro and Sango arguing. She didn't open her eyes at first, afraid that the throbbing behind them would only be made worse by light. So instead she listened.

"It's dangerous for her, we need to get her out of here," Sango hissed. Rokuro laughed harshly.

"Good luck trying to convince her. It was hard enough keeping her from running off to confront that Inuyasha bastard," he replied.

"Then do you have any suggestions?" Sango asked him, sarcastic.

"Yes, actually, I do. I-"

"Kagome?" Karin said, interrupting their argument. Kagome felt Karin's hand on hers. She groaned.

"Yeah…" she said, taking the risk of opening her eyes. She was right, it made her headache worse. Sango, Rokuro, and Karin leaned over her, blocking out a little of the harsh ceiling lights.

"How do you feel?" Karin asked. Kagome tried to smile, but it came out more like a grimace.

"I'm fine," she lied, "What about everyone else?"

"They're okay," Karin said, "The humans are fine and the demons just needed a nap to get back on their feet. The nurse just left to check back in with them." Relief. The feeling didn't completely overcome the guilt of whatever she had done to them, but at least there was no serious injury.

Kagome decided to try moving, but it wasn't until Karin slipped an arm under her back that she was able to sit up. She looked around, and found she was in a grey and white room. Labeled cabinets lined the walls, and a metal sink cut into one of the counters. Ah, the nurse's office.

"What happened?" Kagome asked, looking to her friends. They exchanged glances, and the concerned expressions on their faces made her nervous.

"Guys, what happened?" she pressed.

"Kagome," Rokuro said, slowly, "Are you not aware of the fact that you have spiritual powers?" Kagome blinked, processing his words.

"That's impossible," she said. Rokuro was about to reply, when the door opened. Sesshomaru walked in, followed by a demoness in scrubs. Sesshomaru's eyes swept over the group, narrowing.

"Out," he ordered. None of Kagome's friends moved. Sango's eyes searched for a weapon. Rokuro clenched his fists. Karin stuck her chin out and glared.

Sesshomaru's eyebrow twitched. He examined each of the annoying humans a little closer, eyes pausing on Karin. Then he sighed.

"Please, may I have a moment to speak to Kagome alone?" he growled out. Having to ask anything of a human was embarrassing. Kagome gave Karin's hand a squeeze.

"It's fine guys," she said, "I'd like to hear what he has to say." Karin nodded and stood, gently taking Rokuro's arm and pulling him along with her. Sesshomaru held his breath as they passed, eyes focused on Sango. She stared him down, but he could sense fear in her all the same. As soon as Karin had passed, he allowed himself a deep breath. Yes, there was fear, but her resolve was apparent. If it came to a fight, this human girl would attempt to match him.

"Sango," Kagome said. The staring match ended as Sango looked down to her friend. Kagome smiled at her. The upwards turn of Sango's lips was an involuntary reaction, and quickly faded. She walked around Kagome's bed and towards the door, but stopped right in front of Sesshomaru.

"Hurt her, and you'll be sorry," she said, her voice low. She gave him one last glare before leaving. The nurse checked Kagome's vitals, then left. Then it was just the two of them in the room.

"Your friends are foolish," he said. Kagome smiled.

"Probably," she agreed, "Please, sit." She motioned to a chair by her bed, where Karin had been sitting. Stiffly, Sesshomaru sat. He did not like being given permission by humans for anything, and this entire encounter proved to be trying his patience.

"I was not aware that you possessed spiritual powers," he said.

"Neither was I," Kagome replied. She knotted her hands together over the thin blanket that was drawn over her.

"That seems improbable," Sesshomaru said after a moment's pause. Kagome shot him a look.

"I'm not lying," she said. Sesshomaru took in a deep breath, searching for any sign she was. He could sense guilt, fear, and perhaps a twinge of excitement, but no deceit.

"Apparently not," he replied. A question was stuck on the tip of Kagome's tongue, but they sat in silence for a moment as she worked up the courage to ask it.

"Are you going to send me home?" she asked. She watched Sesshomaru's stone face as he considered her question. At least, she assumed he was considering it. He was extremely hard to read.

"Only if you can't find a way to control yourself," he said, eventually. Kagome frowned.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

"You cannot feel your own powers, even now?" he asked. Kagome looked down at her hands. Suddenly she became aware of a high buzz in her head. It had been there since she woke up, which is why she hadn't noticed it before. As she became aware of it, her powers shifted from something she could hear to something she could feel. At the center of her, a warm light pulsed, spilling out of her and filling the room. She felt it wash over Sesshomaru, clashing with his own aura. She panicked a little, suddenly guilty that she'd been pressing in on him without even realizing it.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I-let me-" But as much as she tried to pull her energy back, it didn't listen to her.

"Stop," Sesshomaru ordered. At his words, Kagome froze. Then she realized she'd been pinwheeling her hands through the air to try and pull in her spiritual energy. She felt immediately dumb. You couldn't pull on something that had no physical form. Sesshomaru sighed.

"I am your guardian here. No one else can force you to stay or leave. Learn to control yourself, that is all I require," he said, "Beyond that it is your decision whether or not you stay here."

"What do you mean, why wouldn't I stay?" Kagome asked. Sesshomaru stood.

"Mikos have never had a place among demons. If you chose to make your own place here, it will not be easy. It goes against nature," he said. His voice wasn't disapproving, simply matter-of-fact. Then he turned to leave.

"Sesshomaru," Kagome said, and he paused, "Thank you." He did not acknowledge her thank you, and left without another word. Her friends flooded back in a second later.

"Are you okay?" Sango asked.

"I'm okay," Kagome assured her. She pulled the blanket off her lap and made to swing her legs off the bed.

"Kagome," Karin said, "You should rest." Kagome shook her head.

"I have to learn to control this," she said, "Otherwise I can't stay here. And I'm not done here yet." She looked up to her friends, desperation etched in her features.

"I think I may be able to help," Rokuro said.

At first, Kagome had protested. She didn't want to leave the Sector and give up talking to Inuyasha that weekend. Plus, she had a growing fear they wouldn't let her return, regardless of Sesshomaru's promise. But Rokuro's logic won out. If she wanted to stay in the Sector at all, she couldn't do it in her current state. That's how they ended up on a train out of the Sector the next day. Sango and Karin wanted to come, but even Rokuro couldn't sweet talk Ina into letting them go. The fox demon was already on edge from Kagome's overflowing well of spiritual energy. The only reason Rokuro was allowed to go was because he knew the monk Kagome needed to seek out. Even so, they were charged with returning by start of classes Monday, or forfeiting their place in the class roster. Kagome resolved

Kagome and Rokuro sat across from each other in the empty train. They had spoken in stilted small talk for the first ten minutes of the journey, but eventually had fallen into a more comfortable silence. Kagome was too nervous to carry on a conversation, and Miroku seemed eager enough to retreat into deep thought. Something buzzed, and Kagome looked up to Miroku, confused. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

"Signal's back. We must be getting close to land," he said. Kagome nodded. She had left her phone in her dorm room. She thought about taking it, but the temptation to call her family would be too great. She wasn't sure she could tell them about everything that had happened without being pulled out of school by her mom and grandfather. For now, she had to keep quiet.

The monk's name was Mushin. Rokuro hadn't revealed exactly how his family knew Mushin, but Kagome knew he was an old family friend. And old he certainly was. Kagome wasn't sure she'd ever seen a man so old. Her grandfather would look spry next to this guy.

He was waiting for them outside the small rural shrine when they arrived. Miroku must have called him when Kagome was in the bathroom at the train station. He wore traditional robes, and held a knarled wooden staff to help support his weight.

"Hey Mushin," Rokuro greeted. Despite his informal tone, he took a moment to give a low bow. Kagome quickly followed suit.

"This must be the girl," Mushin mumbled. Kagome wasn't sure he intended to mumble, but got the impression that was just the way he spoke.

"I-yes, this is Kagome. She needs your help," Rokuro said. Mushin chuckled.

"You should know by now boy that nothing surprises me," he said. Then he turned and started to hobble up the path towards the shrine. Rokuro tried to take his arm and help him, but he shook his head and waved him off.

"The day I cannot make it up this path will be the day I lay down and die, son," he said. Still, Rokuro hovered near him as they moved at an agonizingly slow pace towards the shrine. He fell back in step with Kagome.

"It's spooky how he just knows things. I didn't tell him we were coming," Rokuro whispered. Kagome looked between him and the monk.

"Are you saying he can see the future?" she asked. Rokuro shrugged.

"He always knew when I was about to make trouble as a kid, so it's not outside the realm of possibility," he replied.

"Stop gossiping about me," Mushin snapped at them. Rokuro immediately shut up, leaving Kagome with far too many questions.

They finally made it to the shrine, and Mushin led them into a room with no furniture. The paper screens at the back of the room were open to the garden beyond, and a rocking spout clacked in a steady rhythm.

"Rokuro," Mushin said, and Rokuro left the room and returned with a meditation pillow. He placed it on the ground and helped Mushin lower himself onto it.

"Kagome, please sit" Mushin said. Rokuro hovered for a moment more before Mushin waved a hand at him and told him to make himself useful elsewhere. Hesitantly, Rokuro left them alone. Kagome didn't want him to leave. Mushin was kind of creeping her out, to be honest. He had deeply wrinkled skin, and cataracts over his eyes-eyes that almost completely disappeared under drooping eyelids. His robes hung off his skinny body, and Kagome had no doubt his bones were light as a bird's. He seemed hardly human.

"You were raised in a shrine, were you not?" Mushin asked. Kagome was startled into a stuttering response.

"Oh, um...yes. My family maintains a local shrine outside of Tokyo."

"It is strange that your abilities have not awakened until now. Usually young men and women who grow up in shrines receive some spiritual training, like Rokuro."

"We did when I was young, but nothing ever came of it…" Kagome said. She paused.

"Did Rokuro grow up here?" she asked. Mushin nodded.

"His parents brought him here when he was young. His mother lives nearby, with his brothers and sisters. But he grew up here." Kagome looked towards the doorway that Rokuro had disappeared into.

"Why?" she asked.

"He will tell you soon, I think," Mushin said, "Considering he trusts you enough to bring you here. Quite fond of you, he seems." Kagome flushed.

"It's not like that-" she started to say, but Mushin gave a wheezing laugh.

"I'm teasing you, dear," he said. Kagome tried not to get cross with him, but her embarrassment was steadily rising and she still hadn't gotten any closer to controlling her spiritual energy. Mushin seemed to know this-as he seemed to know a lot of things-and took on a more serious expression.

"Tell me about why you are here," he said. So Kagome did. Not everything, just that she had felt nervous at her archery practice and somehow unleashed a tsunami of spiritual powers on a bunch of unsuspecting demons. She still felt bad about that. Mushin nodded occasionally through her story.

"And you wish to control this power so you can walk among demons at this school?" he asked when she was done. She nodded, then said yes, because she wasn't quite sure if he was blind or not.

"I believe I may be able to help," Mushin said. Kagome let out a breath she'd been holding in.

"Thank you, thank you!" she said. Mushin held up a hand and she quieted immediately.

"But you must be able to help yourself as well. I cannot do everything for you," he said. Kagome nodded.

"I understand," she said, clenching her fists on her knees.

"Good. Now, go find a stick from the garden."

The stick was, apparently, very important. When Kagome returned with a thin twig, Mushin gave her a withering look and sent her back to search again. When she came back with a twisted part of a branch he told her that she must find something 'smooth, like an arrow shaft'. Kagome grumbled under her breath about just telling her that in the first place, because 'stick' was awfully vague, but found a straighter branch all the same. When Mushin approved of her oh-so-important stick, he told her to sit back down across from him. Then he reached into his robes and pulled out a straight stick of his own. Irritation filled Kagome. If he'd had one the whole time-

"Hold it in one hand, like this," Mushin said. Kagome copied his actions, holding the stick rather like a wand in her dominant hand. She hoped he wasn't going to ask her to 'expelliarmus' something. The stick chooses the miko. Yer a priestess, Kagome. She could go on.

"You said you concentrated on the tip of your arrow when your powers emerged the first time," Mushin said, "I want you to concentrate in the same way on the stick. Think about your energies flowing into it, filling it up to its full capacity." Kagome nodded, and focused her eyes on the stick in her hand. She furrowed her eyebrow and clenched her jaw, staring intently at it.

Nothing happened. Energy-energy she'd been able to sense faintly ever since she first shot the arrow-flowed around her and blatantly ignored her demands. She tried to imagine it moving into the stick, but it slipped through her mental fingers easily. Mushin was saying something now:

"Rokuro could do this as a child, so it should not be too much trouble." A flash of anger ripped through her, and her concentration disappeared completely.

"I can't do it," she snapped. Mushin nodded.

"Maybe you can't. Stay here until you know for sure," he replied. Then, with much creaking of joints, he got to his feet and left Kagome alone in the room. Well, great. Damn Rokuro, dragging her out here. She should've gotten answers from Inuyasha before they kicked her out completely. Groaning, she held the stick up again and tried to regain concentration.

Rokuro brought her dinner and a thin mat to sleep on. Apparently Mushin had been completely serious when he said to stay there. Rokuro told her the room had an attached bathroom, but that was it. He didn't ask how it was going. The fact that she was still there was answer enough to that question.

Kagome was starting to get really irritated. All this supposed expert had done was hand her a stick and tell her to 'focus'. She could've done that anywhere. She could've guessed she should do that. Not that her knowing what to do made doing it any easier. She stayed up late into the night, ignoring the setting sun and orchestra of night insects in the garden. She was going to do this. She had to.

She had to.

She woke up on the wood floor in a puddle of her own drool. Her dinner was still next to her, untouched. Groaning, Kagome sat up and wiped at her chin. She made a disgusted face as she cleaned the drool off. Looking down to her hand, she found she still clutched the stick. Damn. Once again ignoring the food next to her, she crossed her legs and held the stick out in front of her. She was calmer now, so she should try again. This time she'd be able to do it.

She had to.

Or not. By lunch, hunger had won out over stubbornness. Kagome picked at the food Rokuro had left the night before. It wasn't great cold, but it was better than nothing. Rokuro and Mushin had been absent the whole morning, and Kagome wondered if they were giving her space or starving her out. Sighing, she turned back to the goddamn stick.

"Just you and me, buddy," she said, "We can do this."

Kagome flopped back in frustration as the sun started to set. Her stomach growled, but she had finished off the cold leftovers hours ago. She stared at the ceiling, feeling tears coming to her eyes.

"I'm failing," she said to herself. She'd never _failed_ at anything before. She'd be mortified if she so much as got a C on a test, so failing was out of the question. But this wasn't like studying or writing or any school work. It wasn't even like archery. Practice didn't help, it only exhausted her.

A face appeared in her view of the ceiling. Rokuro, back with more food. This time, Kagome started eating immediately. It was hard to use chopsticks with her less dominant hand, but the other hand still held the stick and like hell she was going to let go. She expected Rokuro to leave immediately, like last time, but he hovered nearby.

"You're not failing," he said. Kagome scoffed and waved the stick in the air as evidence. Rokuro shrugged.

"Control is hard," he said, "Don't think too much about it, or it'll slip away. Whatever made your power come out the first time had nothing to do with thinking." Kagome paused in her eating, but Rokuro was already gone. She looked down at the stick in her hand, and put down the chopsticks.

How exactly was she supposed to do something without thinking? She was always thinking. Thinking about class. Thinking about stories she was working on. When she was doing archery, she was thinking. Closing her eyes, she tried to remember the moment the spiritual power had first awakened in her. She had her arrow drawn, and she was worried about hitting the target.

No, that wasn't it. Kagome stood and tried to strike the same pose she had on the field. It was strange to hold the stick without the bow, but her fingers curled around the end of the stick like she would an arrow's shaft. That felt right. She was standing like this, and she knew if she didn't hit the target she was going to look...pathetic. But why did she care about that?

The demon watching her. If she failed while he was watching, he'd know she was scared. He'd know she was weak.

Immediately, Kagome became defensive. She wasn't weak! She felt her breath quicken, and her heart beat a little harder. She would never be weak, not in front of her attacker. She'd rather die. The certainty of that fact seemed to flow around her, to concentrate, to almost become physical. Her certainty channeled itself down her arm and-

Kagome opened her eyes, and the stick was glowing with a bright pink light. As soon as she saw the light, it started to fade, and she desperately tried to get it back. But then it was gone, and the spiritual energy was once again drifting around her aimlessly.

"Damn it!" she yelled, throwing the stick down at her feet. It bounced, then rolled, landing at Mushin's feet. Kagome looked up to his face, and found him smiling.

"Very good," he said. Kagome shook her head.

"It wasn't. It disappeared," she said. Mushin's smile deepened.

"No," he said, "It took Rokuro three years to do that." Rokuro groaned from the doorway.

"Gee, thanks, now _I_ feel dumb," he said. Mushin picked up the stick and hobbled over to Kagome. He handed it back to her.

"Let's practice together," he said, "Watch me." Settling down on his pillow, he held his stick out in front of him. Kagome watched in awe as white energy seemed to gather around him and channel into his stick. He clenched it tightly, his brow furrowing as he held the energy there. Then, with a great sigh, he released it.

"You see?" he said, "It is difficult. Even for an old man like me with plenty of experience."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?" Kagome asked, still standing. She still felt frustrated that Mushin left her to figure everything out on her own. She knew it was no use holding grudges, but certainly he owed her an explanation. Right?

"If I told you exactly what to do, you would never have been able to accomplish anything," Mushin said, "You'd be thinking too hard." His gaze slid over to Rokuro, who made himself busy gathering up the used plates in the room.

After a moment's consideration, Kagome nodded and sat down in front of Mushin. She held her stick out, again recalling the moment her powers first found her. Slowly pink energy began to gather in her stick, flowing from her centre through her arm. As she willed it to concentrate, she could feel the tendrils of energy that would normally flow outward redirect themselves. She was no longer emanating a shapeless cloud of purifying power, it was contained. A hand grabbed her wrist, startling her. She looked up and saw Mushin's pale eyes staring intensely at her. Spooked, she lost concentration and her energy once again became a cloud.

"Impossible…" he muttered. Kagome tried to pull her hand back, but his grip was surprisingly strong.

"What's impossible?" she asked.

"Which shrine does your family tend to?" Mushin asked. Kagome narrowed her eyes and didn't answer.

"What does that have to do with anything?" she asked. Mushin jerked her forward, towards him. She dropped her stick and yelped when he grabbed her other wrist.

"Let me go!" Mushin did not reply, but instead murmured something unintelligible. Then he released her arms. Before she could jump up, he brought his fists in, punching her sharply in the chest. Kagome felt herself fly back towards the wall, weightless. She seemed to move in slow motion and impossibly fast all at the same time. In front of her, her body fell backwards. A sharp pain flared in her head as her body's skull hit the ground. Mushin stood. He recited another string of strange syllables, and everything went dark.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine: The Shikon No Tama**

Kagome found herself standing in a plane of darkness. The ground beneath her feet was smooth, like marble, but she couldn't see any light reflecting off of it. Yet when she looked down, she could see herself in a pinkish glow. She stretched her hands out, but touched nothing. Cool air, motionless, surrounded her. She had a foreboding sense of endlessness, like she could keep walking for an eternity in this place and never find an edge. She turned, slowly, her eyes straining in the dark. Then she caught sight of a change in the blackness. A pinpoint of light, far off.

Moving towards it, she felt the air start to move around her. It blew into her face, picking at her hair and pushing it back. At first the force of the wind was light, a mere breeze. Then, the more she moved towards the light, the harder the force became. Soon she was struggling against it, each step becoming harder to place on the ground before her. Involuntary tears blurred her vision as the gale whipped against her face. Kagome closed her eyes, and reached out her hand to feel for the source of the light. Her fingers closed on something cool and round, something that fit perfectly in the palm of her hand. Using her other arm to shield her vision, she looked down at what she was holding. She saw a pink stone that glowed like her spiritual power. Then a noise sounded, seemingly from all around her, a woman's wordless shout. Kagome looked up, and found herself standing in a field at sunset. The sky was purple and orange, and the clouds a dark unhappy blue. The wind, still whipping around her but not as angry as before, now lifted the billowing sleeves of her white haori. Something growled.

Then pain erupted in Kagome's side. Her hand flew to cover the blood-soaked cloth, torn by five claw marks. She gasped, confused and angry. The bitter feeling of betrayal filled her, unbidden. The growl came again, this time from in front of her. She looked up to see Inuyasha, wearing a red haori and hakama. Now they were in a forest. Before she knew what she was doing, Kagome drew and arrow and readied it on her bow. Her bow? Had she been carrying this before? But her bow had broken, back at archery practice…

Pink spiritual power, aimed at Inuyasha, gathered in the tip of her arrow. Kagome's heart leapt into her mouth. She tried to shout, to tell him to get out of the way, but she had as much control over her tongue as she did her hands. And Inuyasha just glared at her between long white bangs, daring her to shoot. She loosed the arrow, and it flew straight, burying itself in Inuyasha's chest and pinning him to the tree behind him. He didn't move. Kagome raised a hand to her cheek, and felt tears there. Then the pain in her side flared and she pitched forward onto the forest floor.

Except the floor disappeared and she was suddenly falling through cool air. She landed lightly, and upon observing her surroundings found she was at home. Sort of. Her family was nowhere to be seen, and there were no visitors at the shrine. Her only company was the Goshinboku, standing proudly at the center of the grounds. Familiarity flooded her, but not because this was home. She stared at the Goshinboku, then turned slightly, and raised her arms as if she were going to shoot an arrow towards it. She could almost see Inuyasha there, pinned against the tree. Like just before. And like in the images on her father's flash drive. Excitement pulsed through her. Had she seen what happened that night?

Something pressed hard on the front of her mind.

A deep, resounding _No_.

No? This wasn't what she was here for? No. That same something she couldn't identify pulled her towards the tree, which had begun to glow with a pink light. She touched the bark, which stripped away from the tree like a wrapper, leaving the white wood underneath. A deep scar marred the tree's flesh, and the pink light poured out of it. Kagome brought her face very close to the tree, lining her eye up with the scar to look inside. She couldn't quite make out what was in there, just that it was glowing very brightly. Leaning back, she placed her hand against the wood over the scar. The trunk began to untwist, widening the cut until she could fit her hand through, then her arm. She reached deep down into the trunk, fingers fumbling against dead leaves, damp wood, and wriggling things. It made her skin crawl, but still she searched until her hand found something solid and round. Grasping hold of it, she yanked her arm from the tree and looked down into her palm. That pink stone, the one from before. But now it wasn't smooth. There was a crack, a chip, really, where a large sliver had come out. And now the pink light poured from that crack like water, pooling onto the ground.

Kagome heard something behind her. A laugh. A laugh that chilled her to the bone. A hand came down on her shoulder, gripping it tightly. Something slithered against her leg. Kagome froze. Fear crawled up her spine and immobilized her. Something came very close to her ear. A face, and breath that tickled her neck. The lips moved.

"Found you, Kikyo."

Kagome screamed, and flung her hand up, solidly connecting with the thing beside her. She didn't look back as she ran towards the great tree. But she didn't get far, because something slimy latched itself onto her leg and pulled. She went crashing to the ground, and the last thing she saw was a large knobbly root headed straight for her face.

Cold water woke her up in the real world. Kagome, now soaked and shivering, sucked in a deep breath of air as she flailed to a sitting position. Rokuro was shouting her name, having dropped the bucket he used to fling the water at her. He knelt down, grabbing her by the shoulders and trying to ask her if she was okay. Still disoriented, she punched him, hitting him square in the jaw and pushing him back so hard he fell to the floor.

"Nope, okay, she's good," he moaned, giving up and laying on the wood floor as water slowly spread out around them. Kagome, breathing heavily, looked up to see Mushin puffing on a pipe in front of her.

"What was that?" she asked with barely contained anger. Her chest hurt, her head hurt, and now her fist hurt from it's sudden connection with Rokuro's face.

"Look in your hand," Mushin replied. Slowly, grudgingly, Kagome looked down at her hand. The knuckles were red, but for the first time she noticed that her fingers were closed around something. Slowly she opened them.

The pink stone sat in her palm, still cracked, but utterly real.

"What is this?" Kagome asked.

"It is the Shikon Jewel. The Jewel of Four Souls. It grants immeasurable power to any demon that wields it, and an immeasurable capacity for corruption in the wrong hands. I could not see it before because your spiritual energies masked it, so spread out as they were. But when you concentrated them into a single wave, the jewel shone so brightly from your chest that it was unmistakable. We are lucky you could not control your powers before, or else any demon may have sensed the jewel and come after you," Mushin replied. Kagome narrowed her eyes. A straight answer was not what she expected. Mushin puffed his pipe again.

"When teaching, simple explanations are only a hindrance to the student. They should be reserved for situations of the utmost urgency," Mushin said. Kagome did not answer, just held the jewel out to him.

"Here," she said, "Take it. I don't want it." Mushin leaned away from the jewel, his fingers clenching tightly on his pipe. His droopy eyes widened, his wrinkled features stiffening as if he were concentrating very hard. His free hand raised slightly off his knee, then he lowered it again and grasped his bony leg until his knuckles turned white.

"I cannot," he said, "I am not worthy to hold such an artifact. Only those with the power to keep it pure have that honor." Kagome shook her head.

"Well, that's not me. I just found out I had spiritual powers, and I still have no idea how to control them, so if this thing is really important, I shouldn't have it."

"On the contrary, I think perhaps you are exactly the person who should have it. Rokuro." At his name, Rokuro sat up with a groan.

"Sorry I punched you," Kagome said quietly. He shrugged.

"Sorry I threw water on you," he said. He stood, and left the room. Kagome could only assume Mushin wanted to speak to her privately.

"What did you see?" he asked, when Rokuro had left. Kagome hesitated. She didn't want to tell him, but she wasn't quite sure why. It felt so...private. Like revealing a dream to a stranger.

"I...um...well I was dressed as a miko," she said, "And Inuyasha was there-he's a demon from the sector-and I...shit, I shot him." Mushin nodded, hmm'ing sagely.

Kagome continued, "And then I was at the tree, and there was a light coming from it. And so I reached inside and found the jewel. Then there was something...evil...it came up behind me. It said it found me. Except it didn't say my name, it said a name...Kikyo? I think that was it."

"My dear," Mushin said, "Do you believe in reincarnation?"

"I guess," Kagome replied, "My grandpa does, but I've never really thought about it."

"The things you have seen, at least some of them, they are memories of your past life. A life when you may have, in fact, been a priestess. Perhaps it was even your responsibility to guard the Shikon Jewel from the clutches of demons. It is a task that you now bear in this life."

"Oh I can't-I'm not-there's no way I could possibly-I mean, what?"

"You must," Mushin replied. Kagome shook her head.

"No. No way!"

"Do you want to find out why your father died?"

Kagome froze. How did Mushin know about that?

"You want to find out why he died, which is why you want to talk to Inuyasha, which is why you went to the Youkai sector," Mushin said. Kagome nodded, too shocked to talk.

"Then you will carry the jewel. It will draw the answers you seek, whether you like them or not. If you want to forget this ever happened, leave the jewel here. I will find some inferior miko to guard it," Mushin said.

Kagome did not react at first, just let Mushin's words wash over her. When she had strung enough thoughts together to answer, she opened her mouth and spoke slowly.

"How am I supposed to keep this thing safe? I can't even keep my powers in check," she said.

"A soul as strong as yours, even fragmented, will find a way. You will learn quickly, because you must. In the meantime, we will give you aid," Mushin said. He gestured to Rokuro, who had reentered the room holding a necklace with a little leather pouch. Symbols were etched into the leather. Rokuro sat next to Kagome and opened the pouch. The smell of herbs drifted out and teased Kagome's nose.

"Put the jewel in here," he said, "It should be powerful enough to mask the energy from it. At least for now." He handed the pouch to Kagome and she placed the Shikon Jewel carefully inside. When she closed the pouch, she felt a switch flip in the room. Both Mushin and Rokuro sighed in relief as the weight of the jewel's energy eased and slowly disappeared.

"Wear that token around your neck at all times," Mushin said, "Never take it off. Come back in a month so I can safely replace it. The Shikon will burn through its power quickly."

"Mushin," Rokuro interrupted, "We really have to go, the cab's waiting."

"It's Monday already?" Kagome asked, startled.

"You were out for hours, all through the night. If we don't leave soon we'll miss the train," Rokuro said. He was clearly trying to speak gently, even though he kept eyeing the time on his phone. Kagome stood, her muscles protesting. She turned to Mushin.

"I want to know why my father died," she said, "So I'll keep it. But once I know that, I'm done. Someone else can take care of it. I don't want to be a miko, and I don't want to keep this jewel." Mushin nodded.

"If that is what you wish, I will make arrangements," he said, "But consider: you went to the Youkai Sector to understand your father's death. Perhaps your father died so you would go to the Youkai Sector. The gods work in mysterious ways, Miss Kagome. Do not spend all your time looking for answers, or you will never understand the web of their plans."

"Kagome…" Rokuro said, his voice verging on a whine.

"Let's go," she said, eyeing Mushin. He was back to riddles, and her head hurt too much to argue with him.

On the once again empty train, Kagome sat next to Rokuro, her head resting on his shoulder. She was surprised how comfortable the position was, considering he was a boy and they hadn't known each other that long. Maybe it was because she spent the whole night exploring her unconscious mind and hadn't gotten any real sleep. Suddenly remembering something Mushin had said, she sat up, making Rokuro jump.

"Hey, you grew up at Mushin's shrine, right?" she asked. He nodded.

"But he said your family lived close by. Why didn't you live there?" she asked. Rokuro looked down and Kagome immediately felt bad.

"I'm sorry," she said, "You don't have to answer that, I shouldn't have pried."

"No, it's okay." Rokuro pushed up his right sleeve to reveal his strange glove. He slid a thumb under the edge of the glove and pulled it up. A sudden wind filled the train, and Kagome grabbed onto his sleeve as stray pieces of paper and other bits of trash flew into a black hole in Rokuro's hand. He only left it free for a second, then quickly pulled the glove back down. Kagome stared at his hand, her mouth wide open.

"What? What was that?" she asked in a high pitched voice.

"The Kazaana," Rokuro replied soberly, "It's a curse that has been passed down in my family for generations. An evil baboon demon laid it on my ancestor, and it has consumed every firstborn son in my bloodline, then passed to the next."

Kagome stared at him in horror.

"Oh my god, Rokuro I had no idea. I'm so sorry," she said. She took his gloved hand, ignoring his flinch.

"What can we do?" she asked.

"They only way to get rid of the curse is kill the demon that cast it," he replied. Then he grinned.

"But the likelihood of finding him is slim to none, so I'm just gonna get married young, have a bunch of kids, and hope they're all girls," he said. Kagome suspected his cheeriness was false, but played along anyway.

"Oh yeah? Who'd be willing to have your kids?" she teased. Rokuro clasped both her hands and held them to his chest.

"Kagome Higurashi, would you do me the honor of bearing my children?" After a moment of barely contained mirth, they both burst out into laughter, and Kagome pulled her hands away.

"I wouldn't be able to anyway," she said, "Apparently it's my fate to become a priestess and guard a sacred jewel my whole life. I'm pretty sure that doesn't involve any 'impure' activities like babymaking."

"Aren't we lucky?" Rokuro said, "Doomed to be sucked into a vortex and a life without sex."

"I'm jealous of Sango and Karin," Kagome whined, "Why couldn't I be the demon slayer?"

"Yeah, I'd rather have a demon kink," Rokuro replied. Kagome scoffed.

"Karin does NOT have a demon kink," she scolded. Rokuro shrugged.

"I dunno, all I'm saying is we should keep an eye on her," he said.

Kagome and Rokuro made it back in time for Monday classes, but Kagome decided not to go to hers. The last thirty minutes of the train ride she'd gotten progressively tired, her lack of real sleep catching up to her. Rokuro was able to herd her off the train and back to the dorm, but the minute she got to her bed she was out like a light. She fell asleep to the sound of Rokuro and Sango's hushed conversation as he explained everything that had happened at Mushin's.

Sango looked over at her friend, sleeping soundly in her clothes and over the covers.

"I've heard of the Shikon Jewel," she said, "My family has stories about it. About a priestess who was killed protecting it. Apparently it was burned with her body on her funeral pyre. That's the last anyone saw of it, until now."

"The wards will keep demons from sensing it for awhile, but it'll burn through them in a month or so." Rokuro said.

"What about her spiritual energy?" Sango asked, "Can she control it?" Rokuro shrugged.

"Sorta. It's not going crazy now, like it was before. But demons will be able to tell she's a miko, for sure. I keep my powers hidden completely, but I'm not sure she'll be able to." Sango pursed her lips. She didn't like this, not one bit.

"You're very protective of her," Rokuro commented with a grin, "Almost like a mother." Sango eyed him suspiciously.

"Why?" she grumbled. Rokuro took both her hands in his.

"Sango, would you do me the honor-" She pulled her hands from his quickly.

"Whatever it is, I don't want to," she said. She opened the door and started to push him out.

"Come on, Sango, give me a chance-"

"No."

"We'd make beautiful babies-"

"No! Perverted monk, get out of here," Sango said, shutting the door. Rokuro called to her from the other side.

"Sango, think of the children!" She locked the door in response. Chuckling, Rokuro turned on his heel and walked down the hall towards his room so he could get ready for class.

Kagome woke up that afternoon and dragged herself to the dining hall. After a meal she felt refreshed, but didn't feel like going to her last class so she just went back to her dorm. The sun was just starting to set, when something tapped against the window. She glanced up from her journal notes, then let out a squeak as she saw a familiar figure crouching on her window sill. Inuyasha gripped the side of the building, tapping against the glass with his claw. He stared at her intensely, eyebrows drawn together and corners of his mouth turned down. He looked a bit like a monkey in a zoo, glaring at her through the glass. Pointing at the window, he made a little opening motion. Kagome snapped her sagging mouth shut, and scowled. What? She stood and walked over to the window, opening it roughly and nearly knocking him off the side of the building.

"Watch it, wench!" he snapped, throwing his arms out to catch himself.

"What are you doing here?" Kagome hissed.

"Sesshomaru said you found out you were a miko," Inuyasha replied. Kagome waited for some further explanation, but it didn't seem like he was going to give any.

"And?" she prodded. Inuyasha's brow furrowed, as if he was realizing for the first time that he didn't have any particular reason to be there.

"Well...I don't know!" he said. Kagome crossed her arms and stepped forward, causing him to lean out over the open air beyond the window.

"Last time I saw you, you said 'see you never', why the change of heart, huh?" Kagome demanded. Inuyasha grimaced.

"I-you-back off!" he stuttered. Kagome stepped back and sighed.

"Why don't you come in so we can talk," she said. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"I can't, idiot. There's a barrier around the building. It's hard enough to get this close."

"Then what do you suggest?" Kagome asked, prickling at his insult. He glanced behind him, then back to Kagome. Then he held out an open hand just beyond the window. Kagome looked between his hand and his face.

"You want me to go out the window?" she asked.

"Well, they're definitely keeping tabs on you. If you go out the front door-"

"Okay, I get it." They stared at each other for a second.

"Well?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome bit her lip.

"You're a half demon, right?" she asked abruptly. Inuyasha stiffened a little.

"Yeah…" he mumbled. Kagome sucked in a breath and squared her shoulders.

"Just remember that I'm a priestess now, so I can purify your ass if you try anything. Got it, dog boy?" she said quickly. Inuyasha huffed.

"Yeah, got it, got it. Come on, let's go." Kagome reached out the window and took his hand. His palm was dry and warm, and the tips of his claws tickled against her fingers. Then his hand gripped hers tightly and he pulled her out the window. Next thing she knew they were careening towards the ground. Kagome let out a shriek, but quickly slapped a hand over her mouth when she remembered she was supposed to be sneaking out. Inuyasha landed solidly in the grass below her window.

"A little warning please!" Kagome hissed. Inuyasha laughed, and easily swung her onto his back.

"Hold on, wench," he said. Kagome had barely a moment to lock her arms and legs in place before he took off running towards the wall. He leapt towards the wall, landing about halfway up. His claws dug into the stone, finding any nook and cranny to hold them in place.

"Oh my god," Kagome muttered, closing her eyes and pressing her face into his back. Inuyasha scoffed, and Kagome felt him reach upward. Holding her on his back, he started to easily scale the stone wall. His muscles worked quickly, firm under her terrified grip. In seconds, they were at the top of the wall. Just when Kagome opened her eyes to see, they were off again, onto a rooftop, up a drainage pipe, around an empty ledge and so on. After the first few minutes of fear, Kagome felt herself start to relax into the sensation of rising and falling over the cityscape. As the sky grew darker, the lamps of the city started to glow. Above the streets, she and Inuyasha were easily hidden from ordinary passerby. She got the sense this was something Inuyasha did often. Before long they stopped on a sloped rooftop-the roof of Sesshomaru's mansion. Inuyasha let Kagome slide off his back near one of the chimneys, and she clutched the bricks for support as her legs regained their strength. Carefully she turned, leaned her back against the brick and lowered herself to sit on the sloped roof. She tried not to look towards the ground, but the glimpses she caught made her stomach do flip flops.

"That was crazy," she said, a little breathless. Inuyasha grunted, but it seemed like a pleased sort of sound. He sat down gracefully on the roof, with none of the human hesitation Kagome showed.

"You wanted to talk about something," he said.

"Right. I do," Kagome replied, "Tell me about the Goshinboku." Inuyasha looked at her sharply, one fuzzy ear twitching.

"How the hell do you know about that? Sesshomaru got rid of anyone who knew about that."

"Well, he missed someone," Kagome retorted, "And you're going to tell me about what happened." Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, then looked away from her. He didn't say anything. Kagome opened her mouth, then closed it. Perhaps being nice would be more productive in this situation. She spoke again, but softly.

"Listen," she said, "I just want to know because...my dad was researching it. He died before he found the answers he was looking for. I think that he may have died because of what he was looking for. If there's anything you can tell me, please, I need to know."

Inuyasha looked at her out of the corner of his eye.

"If your dad died because of this stuff, you should just forget it," he said, "Leave the Sector and stay the hell away." Kagome shook her head emphatically.

"No," she said. Inuyasha looked away from her again. He was quiet for a long moment, and Kagome was about to ask again when he spoke.

"I was a dumbass and got caught by a miko. She pinned me to the tree with a spiritual arrow and I got stuck there until my brother came to get me out. He brought me here, to the Sector, right before it was closed off." Kagome pursed her lips. It seemed like the truth, but certainly not the whole truth.

"Why didn't she kill you?" she asked quietly.

"I dunno," Inuyasha said quickly. Too quickly.

"Are you sure?" Kagome pressed. Inuyasha grumbled something under his breath, then moved suddenly. He turned to face Kagome, anger clear on his face.

"Yes! Look, she could've killed me, but she didn't. I don't know why! You think I don't ask myself all the time why I woke up after that?"

Kagome threw her hands up, palms open.

"Okay! I'm sorry!" she said. Inuyasha glared at her, then looked down.

"You knew her, right?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha clenched his fists and didn't reply. Kagome watched him carefully, not wanting to make him yell again. She remembered her vision, the feeling of betrayal that had flooded her at the sight of Inuyasha in the forest.

"It seems like you knew her. Like, maybe you guys were friends." When Inuyasha didn't reply, Kagome continued to talk.

"And then she got hurt, and she went after you. You could've moved when she shot you, but you didn't. You didn't think she would really do it. But Kikyo-"

Inuyasha's face was suddenly inches away from hers. Kagome squeaked and tried to move away, but found herself backed up against the chimney with nowhere to go.

"How do you know that name?" Inuyasha growled. Kagome's vision blurred as she tried to focus on his face, and she stuttered out an answer.

"I-there was-I heard it! In a dream!" she managed to get out. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, but didn't back off.

"Explain." Kagome began to babble.

"After the archery practice Sesshomaru said I needed to get control of my powers, so I went to see this monk, and then I had this dream. You were there, and I didn't have control over my body, except it wasn't my body, it was hers. I saw you get stuck to the tree and then-" Inuyasha leaned back.

"Okay, okay, geez," he said, trying to stop the rapid flood of words. Kagome bit her lip.

"I didn't mean to upset you," she said, "It's just what I saw. You hurt her in the field, then she sealed you to the tree." Inuyasha frowned.

"Hurt her-I didn't hurt her! I would never…" he trailed off, looking into space, confused.

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked.

"Whatever you saw, it was wrong. She was gonna-look, we had a deal and she went back on it. So I went to take what she owed me, and then she just showed up all bloody and crazy. I never touched her." Come to think of it, Kagome didn't actually see Inuyasha in the field in her vision. He didn't show up until the forest. But she knew-she knew, beyond any doubt-that it had been him who'd clawed her. She, or Kikyo, she supposed, was absolutely certain. And the feeling of hurt, of anger and betrayal was so strong towards him. Inuyasha waved a hand in front of her face.

"Hey!" he said. Kagome swatted his hand away.

"If you didn't hurt her, who did?" Kagome asked. A million questions were going through her head, because none of this made sense. Inuyasha shrugged.

"She didn't exactly give me the chance to ask," he said. They sat silently, both considering the new information they'd been given.

"Inuyasha," Kagome said slowly, "The monk...well...he told me he thinks I'm the, uh, reincarnation of Kikyo." She looked up at the half demon, and was confused when he didn't look very surprised.

"I thought so," he said. Kagome frowned.

"You _thought_ so?" she asked, her voice getting a little louder, "Could you have _thought_ to tell me?"

"Oh, gee, like you would've believed me! And I wasn't sure, anyway. You look like her, but you and Kikyo smell nothing alike," Inuyasha snapped.

"Yeah," Kagome replied, "Maybe because Kikyo lived in a time before deodorant and showers." Inuyasha straightened up, offended.

"Shut up!" he said "You don't know anything about Kikyo."

"I know she was supposed to guard the Shikon Jewel, and now that's apparently my job," Kagome retorted. The second after she said it, she realized she'd revealed too much. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes.

"What did you say?" he asked, leaning in. Kagome stared at him with wide eyes.

"N-nothing!"

"Do you have the jewel?"

"No!"

"You're lying, I can tell," Inuyasha growled. Kagome reached up, closing a hand over the leather pouch around her neck. Inuyasha's eyes followed her movement. They sat in tense silence for a moment, then he reached out and made a grab for the pouch. Kagome squeaked and kicked out, knocking him off balance. He slid a few feet down the roof before he could recover, but it was enough time for Kagome to call on her powers. The energy pooled into her hands and started to glow brightly in the night. Inuyasha watched her carefully, weighing his options. He could grab the pouch, but not without getting zapped. Kagome didn't want to give him that option.

"Truce!" she said, "I call truce." Inuyasha hesitated, but nodded. Kagome lowered her hands, but the spiritual energy didn't dissipate completely. She wasn't stupid.

"You have the Shikon Jewel in there?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome nodded.

"Most of it," she said, "There's a piece missing. I can't take it out, the pouch keeps demons from being able to sense it." Inuyasha grunted.

"Smart," he acknowledged, "Not a good idea to be flaunting that thing around in here."

"Look, I think we can help each other," Kagome said. Inuyasha didn't reply, just waited for her to continue.

"I want to find out why my dad died. You want this jewel. Help me figure out who killed him and why, and I'll give it to you," she said. Inuyasha watched her suspiciously.

"Come on!" Kagome said, "I know the last deal you made with a priestess didn't go so well, but I give you my word I won't do the same thing. All I'm asking for is peace of mind over my dad's death."

"I'll do you one better," Inuyasha said, "We find who caused your dad's death, I'll kill him myself. Then you give me the jewel and get the hell out of here. Understood?" Kagome nodded.

"Deal," she said.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: The Spider King**

When Kagome demanded Inuyasha tell her everything he know, she was hoping he would know _something_. Turns out he knew next to nothing about how or why her father could've been killed. Her dad had come to the Sector in the late 90s to expand his research into feudal demons. He was one of the few humans given limited access to the sector at that time. They were only allowed in during a few hours of the day, and only to certain areas. Her father was a reporter and researcher, and spent most of his time in libraries or trying to convince rich demons to let him see their private collections. Inuyasha had never met her dad, even though he was certainly in the Sector at that point. He didn't know anyone who had met her dad-turns out, when you're a half demon in hiding, you only come out at night and you don't have a lot of friends. And Kagome's dad was killed outside the Sector in an alleged car crash, which meant that if a demon killed him it would've had to sneak outside.

Inuyasha also had no idea why Kagome's father had pictures of him on a flashdrive. In fact, he was kind of freaked out when he heard about it, especially the one of him in the crowd at the Youkai Killer crime scene.

"What the hell? Damn Fluffy, can't even keep a damn human from finding pictures of me. He was supposed to take care of that!"

Anyway. They spent a few hours wracking their brains to find a connection, but eventually gave up in frustration. Inuyasha took Kagome back to the dorm, where she found Sango and Rokuro forming a plan to locate and rescue her. After superfluous apologies and a (admittedly, deserved) scolding, they finally let her go to sleep.

By Wednesday, Kagome had resigned herself to a dead end. She didn't have anything else from her dad's box, and Inuyasha hadn't opened up the wealth of knowledge she'd been hoping he would. The demon who had attacked her obviously knew what her dad was looking for, but he wasn't likely to open up about it anytime soon-not that they knew who he was. With no leads and no hope, Kagome went to class in a bad mood. Even Mr. Ooturo's lecture, a riveting explanation of feudal Youkai prostitution rings, didn't interest her. Absently, she took notes, and doodled in the margins of her notebook. Class dismissed, and she was about to leave when Mr. Ooturo stopped her.

"Ms. Higurashi, would you hang back for a moment?" he asked. Kagome glanced at Sango, who shrugged.

"I'll wait," she said, and left the classroom. Kagome walked over to Mr. Ooturo's table and took a seat at the closest desk.

"What's up?" she asked.

"I remembered where I'd heard your name before. Do you have any relation to Katsuo Higurashi?" Kagome leaned in, suddenly excited.

"Yes! That was my dad!" she said.

"...Was?" Mr. Ooturo asked. Kagome nodded.

"Yeah, he died when I was a kid. But he was here, he was doing research in the Sector," she said.

"I'm very sorry to hear that, he seemed like a good man," Mr. Ooturo said. He clasped his hands over his desk, brow furrowed.

"He was," Kagome replied, then after a pause, "Did you work with him?"

"No, not really. He came to me just once, looking for information on a feudal...well, a legend of sorts. Very obscure, especially for a human to be looking into. I was able to lend him a single book, but that was it. Not entirely helpful, I'm afraid."

"What did he ask you about?" Kagome asked, nearly breathless, leaning on the edge of her seat.

"The legend of the Spider King. I-well, here," he stood, and walked over to one of his bookshelves. He scanned the spines, then retrieved a short, dusty book. It had a red cloth cover, and raised bands on the spine. The inked words on the cover were faded, but Kagome could make out 'Legends' and what looked like a date range. Mr. Ooturo opened the book and flipped about halfway through.

"There," he said, putting the book down in front of her and sliding into the desk beside hers. He pointed towards the title of a chapter. The Spider King.

"It's only a few pages, but it's pretty much all that survives of the legend," he said. Kagome picked up the book, her eyes scanning the first few lines. They talked about a demon who bore the mark of the spider, who battled other demons to steal their powers in the feudal era. No mention of Inuyasha or the Shikon Jewel, or anything that connected to the pictures on her dad's flash drive. Disappointed, she lowered the book.

"I'm sorry if I upset you," Mr. Ooturo said. Kagome shook her head.

"No, no, I'm fine. Thank you for sharing this with me," she replied. She ran a finger over the aged paper of the book. She smiled at Mr. Ooturo.

"It's nice to know someone here met him. I don't...well, this is probably too personal but I don't have many memories of my dad. I was three when he died, and my brother wasn't even born yet," Kagome said. Then she shook her head and shut the book, holding it back out to Mr. Ooturo.

"Thank you," she said. He put a hand up, pushing the book back towards her chest.

"Keep it," he said, "I can spare a book for such an important reason." Kagome's eyes widened.

"Wh-really?" she asked. Mr. Ooturo nodded.

"Of course. Just take good care of it," he replied. Kagome started nodding dumbly.

"I will, I promise," she said, hugging the book to her chest, "Thank you so much!" She stood, making to head for the door, then returning to the desk to get her backpack before making a quick exit. Sango, true to her word, was waiting in the hallway. Kagome held up the book.

"He gave me this. Apparently my dad borrowed it from him a long time ago," Kagome said without prompting. Sango frowned.

"Anything about Inuyasha in it?" she asked. Kagome shook her head.

"I don't think so. At least, not from what Mr. Ooturo said he was asking for," she replied.

"Which was?"

"Information on the Spider King. Ever heard of him?" Sango shook her head.

"No…" she said, "Why was your dad looking into him? Did he have something to do with Inuyasha and Kikyo?"

"Probably, I'm just not sure what. In any case, I'm gonna read this book forwards and backwards until I find a connection," Kagome said.

As Sango and Kagome walked back towards the dorm to meet Rokuro, they saw a small crowd gathering around the front door. Exchanging glances, they started to walk quickly towards whatever had attracted the mixed group of humans and demons. As they got closer, they saw the looks on people's faces. Fear.

Frowning, Kagome eased her way into the crowd, approaching the door to the dorm. When she got closer to the front, she gasped, jumping back and knocking into Sango.

"What?" Sango asked. Kagome moved aside, letting her see. It was Ina, and she was nailed to the door of the dorm.

She was dead.

A torn piece of silk was tied around her face, hiding her eyes. The wind picked up the silk, and as it flapped like a flag, Kagome saw the words 'found you' inked on it in deep black.

Classes were cancelled indefinitely. Only four weeks into the program, and it was as dead as Ina. As soon as human parents got the news, they were going to pull their kids immediately. Several sponsors had already said they wanted to send kids home, worried not only for the humans' safety, but for their own. The combined demon and human authorities had decided to keep the students on campus for a week, until safe transport could be arranged for the entire group. They weren't allowed to leave campus, and were only allowed to leave their dorm with an escort. Immediate shutdown. It wasn't likely that classes would pick up again, not with rumors of the Youkai Killer back on the streets.

The investigators hadn't yet said it was the famous serial killer from the 80s-before the sector was open to humans-but hushed rumors had already made their way around the city. The Youkai Killer investigation, the first collaboration between human and demon police forces, could even be called the catalyst of all integration efforts. Three decades later, it seemed the killer didn't approve of what he, arguably, caused. At least, that's what killing the dorm supervisor of the human students said to Myoga and the rest of the school administration.

Kagome couldn't get the image of the flapping silk out of her head. The words, 'found you', scrawled on it. Whoever it was didn't have to write 'Kikyo', she knew the sign was for her. Or who the killer thought she was. And if the youkai who had attacked her, who had come to her archery practice to taunt her, if he was the Youkai Killer, what did that mean about her father's work? Was he killed by a demon serial killer who somehow managed to sneak out of the sector? If that demon could sneak on campus undetected and kill Ina, it seemed entirely likely.

Kagome laid on the floor of her room with her head in Karin's lap. Sango was pacing back and forth, and Rokuro was sitting on Kagome's bed, flipping through the book Mr. Ooturo had given her.

"You're telling me whoever killed Ina is after Kagome?" Karin asked.

"We don't know that for sure," Sango said.

"I'm sure," Kagome replied. Sango stopped pacing and crossed her arms, raising her eyebrows at Kagome. Kagome sat up.

"I am sure," she defended herself, "I don't know how, but I am."

"You're probably right," Rokuro muttered, "There would be lingering demonic energy you could sense. If it's familiar, it's probably the same guy." Sango uncrossed her arms and resumed pacing. Karin spoke again.

"And Kagome's a reincarnation of Kikyo, who was a priestess who knew Inuyasha, who saved Kagome from the Youkai Killer when he was a human, because he's a half demon and sometimes that happens," she said.

"Correct," Rokuro said. Karin paused, nodding. Then she grinned.

"This is amazing. I mean, I feel really bad for Ina, but this is amazing! It's like an adventure novel!" she said.

"Speaking of novels," Rokuro interrupted, "Nothing in here mentions Inuyasha and Kikyo."

"I know," Kagome said, "I have no idea why my dad would ask about the Spider King if he had nothing to do with his research."

"I mean, we know someone had to injure Kikyo, and if Inuyasha's telling the truth-" Rokuro said.

"He is," Kagome said.

" _If_ he's telling the truth, then maybe it was this spider guy. But nothing in here suggests it was him. This legend didn't even show up until after Inuyasha says he got pinned to the tree. And he went after demons, not priestesses," Rokuro said. Sango paused in her pacing.

"If he wanted power, it would've made sense for him to go after the Shikon Jewel," she added.

"Then why not take the jewel when Kikyo died? The villagers had it, it was burned with her body," Kagome said. Sango nodded.

"True," she replied.

"I have a question," Karin said. The other three looked at her, curious.

"Why did the Youkai Killer stop?" Karin asked. In reply to her sudden change of topic, she received blank stares.

"Really, why did he stop? He killed a bunch of demons then just disappeared. And why is he killing again?" Rokuro shrugged.

"Does it matter? He's crazy," he said. Karin frowned.

"I guess," she said, "But it just doesn't make sense to me. He killed demons in the 80s, a human in the 90s, and now another demon? There's got to be some connection."

"...Finding out the identity of a murderer is enough to get yourself killed, right?" Rokuro asked. When Kagome looked confused, he motioned to the book.

"Your dad was looking into this spider demon, who killed other demons in the feudal era to steal their power. The Youkai Killer murdered demons in the 80s, like Karin said. If the Spider King is the Youkai Killer, He wouldn't want anyone to know who he was. That's pretty good reason to kill a nosy reporter-no offense, Kagome," he said.

"It makes sense," Sango said, quietly. Kagome considered the option. The Youkai Killer was the Spider King, and he killed her father, and maybe he killed Kikyo.

"It'd be an awfully big coincidence for him to have killed Kikyo, my dad, and me, the reincarnation of Kikyo," she said.

"A coincidence or a curse," Rokuro mumbled.

"But just because my dad thought the Youkai Killer was the Spider King, didn't mean he knew who he would be today. The Spider King is just a legend. That book doesn't even have any art of him," she said. Rokuro held up the book.

"Except there's a page missing," he said. Kagome jumped to her feet and took the book from him. It was true, there was a barely perceptible torn edge in the binding of the book. A page had been ripped out.

"Where do you think it is?" Karin asked. Kagome groaned.

"I think I know," she said, "If my dad tore this page out, it would be in the box where I found the flash drive. Which is at home. And we can't leave until the end of the week."

"We won't be able to get back after that anyway," Sango added. Kagome shooed Rokuro off her bed and flopped down onto it.

"Damn it. There's got to be a way to get that page and get back here," she said, staring up at the ceiling.

Inuyasha showed up that night at the window. Sango had gone to sleep, but Kagome was sitting awake going over the Spider King legend again. She heard the light tapping of his claw on the glass, and looked up to see him once again crouching on the window sill. Carefully, trying not to wake Sango, she stood up and slid the window open. She clutched her book tightly in one hand as she whispered to Inuyasha.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"What the hell happened today?" Inuyasha blurted out. Kagome put her hand over his mouth, motioning to the sleeping Sango.

"Keep it down, won't you?" she hissed. In the next moment, Inuyasha had grabbed her hand and pulled her out the window and onto his back.

"Hold on," he said, and started to scale the building. When they made it to the roof, he put her down. Without waiting for her to get comfortable, he spoke.

"What happened? People kept saying the damn Youkai Killer was back and he'd killed someone on campus. I thought…" he trailed off.

"You thought?" Kagome prompted.

"I thought it might have been you," he said. Kagome bit her lip and tilted her head a little. He seemed genuinely concerned for her safety, which she hadn't been expecting.

"You know, 'cause of the jewel," he added gruffly. Oh, yeah, that made more sense. Kagome nodded and sucked in a breath.

"He killed Ina," she said, "She was the demon looking after our dorm."

"Why would he go after her? I've never…" Again he trailed off. Kagome narrowed her eyes.

"You've never what?" she asked. Inuyasha replied a little too quickly.

"I've never heard of her being connected to the old cases," he said.

"None of the old cases were related either," Kagome replied, "They were just random demons around town. None of them were even that powerful." Inuyasha's ears drooped.

"I know," he said defensively, "I was here for it." Kagome watched him stare down at the roof, his eyebrows drawn together sadly. After a slight hesitation, only for fear of his reaction, she placed her hand on top of his on the roof tiles. He flinched slightly, but didn't break the contact.

"Did you know any of the victims?" she asked gently. Inuyasha shook his head.

"Not well. Just places I'd been, you know," he said. Kagome nodded. Most of the victims had owned stores or restaurants around town. Easy prey, she supposed, compared to the rich youkai living in private mansions with magical barriers. Death didn't come often among demons in the Sector. Few died of old age and even fewer due to violence. The limited population and space made the old ways of battling for power obsolete. Most demons had adapted. Except for the Spider King, apparently. Kagome pulled her hand away from Inuyasha's suddenly.

"Oh!" she said, "I have something to tell you."

"What?" Inuyasha asked, warily. Kagome held up her book.

"I think I found something on my dad," she said. She explained that her father had been looking into the Spider King, and that the Spider King might be the Youkai Killer. That there was a page missing, maybe with a drawing of the demon.

"Why the hell didn't you say that first?!" Inuyasha snapped, "That's big!"

"Do you know who he is?" Kagome asked, excitedly. She decided to ignore his harsh words. Inuyasha shook his head.

"No, but I know who might," Inuyasha said. He stood, and pulled Kagome to her feet beside him.

"Wait!" Kagome said as he prepared to fling them off the roof towards the campus wall. He paused, his body tense with the urge to get going as quickly as possible.

"There's one more thing. We think the Spider King might have killed Kikyo," Kagome said. Inuyasha's ears flicked straight towards her, suddenly still compared to their usual constant shifting.

"What?" he asked, voice almost a growl.

"If the Spider King is the Youkai Killer, he could have caused my dad's accident and he's been following me. Ina had a scarf tied around her head and someone wrote 'found you' on it. I think he thinks I'm Kikyo, and he's following me because he killed her."

"But she thinks I hurt her," Inuyasha said, "You said so yourself."

"Maybe he tricked her?" Kagome suggested. Inuyasha didn't reply, just stared at her.

"It's just a working theory, but it all fits. The Spider King was power hungry, what greater power than the jewel?" she said, raising a hand to brush against the leather pouch hanging from her neck. Inuyasha nodded curtly, then turned away from her and crouched down on the roof.

"Get on," he said, gruff. Kagome climbed onto his back, and he took off into the night, taking them to whoever knew the Spider King.

Kagome was surprised when Inuyasha didn't head for the campus wall, but instead towards the center of campus.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"To see an old friend of my dad's. He owes me," Inuyasha said. He didn't offer any more information than that. Kagome sighed and buried her face in his back as he ran. It was cold with the wind whipping by them so fast, and it felt better to press against him in the chill. Inuyasha stumbled a little bit, and Kagome squeezed him tighter.

"What the hell?" she snapped.

"Feh, deal with it, wench," Inuyasha grumbled. She tried to peer around his shoulder to see his face, but only caught a red-tinged cheek. She frowned, and barely had time to settle back in before Inuyasha skidded to halt in front of a tall and thin building. He let go of her legs suddenly, and Kagome slipped off his back, nearly falling on her butt. She just barely got her feet under her in time.

"Hey," she snapped, "A little warning?" Inuyasha smirked, then motioned towards the building.

"Let's go," he said.

"Oh, we're going in the normal way?" Kagome teased. Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"There's an elevator. Plus, he already knows we're here by now," he said. He stuffed his hands down in his pockets and headed towards the front door of the building. Kagome followed him, a little disappointed he wasn't still touching her. _Pffft_ , she scolded herself, _stop that train of thought right now_. Trying to distract herself, she jogged to catch up to Inuyasha and started peppering him with questions as they walked into the building and onto the elevator.

"This guy knew your dad? Were they friends? Did they fight together in youkai battles? Does Sesshomaru know him too? Does he know you're a hanyou? I thought you were keeping that a secret."

"Wench!" Inuyasha snapped as the elevator started moving up the building.

"What? I'm inquisitive by nature," Kagome said, "It's what'll make me a good reporter." Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"If you say so," he grumbled, "but I could think of better things to be." Raising a hand, Kagome punched him in the arm. He glared at her.

"Ow."

"That didn't hurt you."

"Still, isn't it the thought that counts?" Inuyasha asked.

"Precisely," Kagome replied. Inuyasha opened his mouth to speak again, then shut it, unable to think of a comeback. Kagome smiled, pleased that she'd gotten the last word. The elevator slowed to a stop, and with a light ding the doors opened before them into an office. Inuyasha stepped out of the elevator, not waiting for Kagome to follow him. Irritated, she stalked behind, and nearly crashed into him when he stopped suddenly. She let out a quiet 'oof', and stumbled back, then peered around him. Sitting at his desk in front of them was Mr. Myoga. He looked up from some paperwork, and gave them a warm smile.

"Master Inuyasha," he said, "It's been awhile. What brings you to see me?" Kagome blinked. Master Inuyasha?

"Myoga, stop with the whole master thing. I ain't the master of anything, never was." Myoga stood, and looked at Inuyasha sternly down his long nose.

"Young Lord, it is out of respect of your father's legacy that I honor the traditions of our families. Now, please, introduce me to your friend. I'm curious why she's out of her dorm without a designated escort," Myoga said. Kagome quickly stepped out from behind Inuyasha and bowed.

"My name is Kagome Higurashi, sir, and I apologize for breaking the rules," she said. She didn't need Inuyasha to introduce her. Plus, if she knew his foul mouth, he could only get her in more trouble. Myoga chuckled, and stepped around the desk.

"Please, no need," he said, "You're here with Master Inuyasha, so it must be of some importance. He never comes here unless he needs something from me." Kagome stood up and snuck a glance at Inuyasha. He had his arms crossed and was staring pointedly at the ceiling. Kagome began to answer.

"Y-yes. It is important. We...umm…" Suddenly Kagome was having trouble remembering what she wanted to ask, and it seemed incredibly unimportant. Inuyasha cut in.

"We need some info on the Spider King," he snapped.

"Yes. That," Kagome added. Myoga's eyebrows raised.

"An odd request," he said. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes and scoffed.

"Cut the crap, Myoga. What do you know?" he demanded. Kagome elbowed him.

"Be nice," she hissed.

"I am being nice," he whispered back furiously.

"Why don't we have a seat?" Myoga suggested, walking over to a set of chairs and a small couch. He sat down in one of the chairs, and after a moment Kagome joined him. She sat on the very edge of the couch, and knotted her hands together on her knees. Inuyasha didn't sit, but instead wandered the room restlessly. Myoga didn't seem to mind, and focused his attention on Kagome.

"Miss Higurashi, you're the newly discovered miko, am I correct?" he asked. Kagome nodded.

"I'm sorry about that," she said, "I had no idea I had any spiritual powers."

"It's quite alright. Most people have no idea these days. Not much use for spiritual powers without demons roaming the countryside," Myoga replied. Inuyasha snorted from across the room, but Myoga ignored him.

"How did you hear about the Spider King? In one of your classes?" Myoga asked. Kagome shook her head.

"No-well, sort of. From one of my teachers," she said.

"And how did you meet Inuyasha? He refused to be enrolled in any classes here," Myoga replied.

"We ran into each other when I was in town," Kagome said. She didn't want to share any more than that.

"I hope he didn't leave too bad an impression," Myoga said quietly.

"I can hear you, old flea," Inuyasha grumbled. Kagome smiled.

"Pretty terrible," she said. Inuyasha looked towards her sharply, and stormed over to the two of them. He threw himself down on the couch beside Kagome and glared at Myoga.

"Just tell us about the Spider King. Do you know who he is?" he said.

"The Spider King is a legend," Myoga replied.

"Bullshit," Inuyasha replied, "I may have been out of comission for a couple hundred years, but you weren't. What do you know, Myoga?" Myoga sighed.

"Not much. But I'll share what I can." Kagome leaned forward as Inuyasha leaned back. He put his arms out to either side of the small couch, maintaining a steady glare towards Myoga as the old youkai started to talk.

"Miss Kagome-may I call you...?-" Kagome nodded"-thank you. The Spider King was a title given to a vicious demon from the feudal era. Considering Inuyasha's forwardness, I suppose you are aware of his being pinned to a tree with a sacred arrow. Shortly after that event, rumors started circling the youkai community. We were a much bigger presence then, many different tribes from many different provinces. Demons are usually a solitary type, or else they live in small packs. Back in the day, meeting a youkai outside of one's inner circle usually ended in bloodshed. Still, news started to get around." Myoga paused. He clasped his hands together, and Kagome noticed they were shaking a little.

"Of course," he continued, "We'd all heard of the demise of the Shikon priestess. A few of us, those who knew Inuyasha's father, went to her village. When we got there, we discovered Inuyasha sealed to a tree, and the sacred jewel nowhere to be found. There were others, malicious demons, who attempted to attack the village. We were able to fend them off. When it became clear the jewel was lost to us forever, and could not fall into the wrong hands, we left. Demons still traveled to the village. They wanted to search the priestess's remains, find the jewel that had been burned with her. They might have destroyed the village, but, as each came they fell. None were able to disturb the grave of the Shikon priestess. When the villagers found them, the bodies had no hearts and no eyes. The villagers dumped the bodies down an old, dried up well and sealed it to keep any bad spirits within. They thought a guardian had come to keep them safe in the wake of the jewel's disappearance."

Inuyasha scoffed beside Kagome.

"Trusting humans," he muttered. Kagome glanced at him. His voice was dismissive, but his ears were pressed low to his head and his eyes were downcast. He glanced up at her, and then quickly away when he met her gaze.

"Yes, trusting. And foolish. After he'd gained enough strength, the Spider King slaughtered the village. When neighboring humans found out, they purified the site and built a shrine near the well to keep the new evil away. But he wasn't interested in humans. Few demons saw him and survived, and those who did were often hunted down mercilessly. For a long time he preyed on the weakest of us, and the old youkai families couldn't be concerned with the matters of common demons. He would torture a victim, and when they finally died, he'd remove the eyes and heart and disappear to some lair. With each demon he grew stronger, taking on their powers. Then he decided to attack one of the old families."

"What happened?" Kagome asked.

"He died," Myoga said. There was a moment of silence, then he continued, "Or, at least, we thought he did. The Poison Master tribe claimed to have destroyed him. And then, hundreds of years later, he started killing weak demons in the Sector." Inuyasha's ears flicked forward and Kagome narrowed her eyes.

"You knew the Spider King was the Youkai Killer?" she asked. Myoga shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Only those of us with knowledge of the Youkai Killer's methods knew. A handful of demons and humans in charge of the investigation. And most demons forgot about the Spider King. I only remembered him because of the village I left to his whims."

"My father knew," Kagome said quietly. Myoga tilted his head.

"Your father?"

"Katsuo Higurashi. He was a reporter, a researcher. He came here in the 90s, and he died because he made the connection between the Youkai Killer and the Spider King." Myoga, his eyes lowered, seemed to consider her words for a long time. Then he nodded slowly.

"I did not ever meet your father," he said, "But I remember when Lord Sesshomaru asked me to pull some strings and revoke his permission to enter the Sector. Apparently he was getting too close to Inuyasha's secrets." Inuyasha sat up a little at this.

"That fluffy bastard knew about Kagome's father?"

"Could he have…?" Kagome wondered aloud. Myoga shook his head.

"Oh, no, he wouldn't do such a thing," he said.

"More like he wouldn't put so much effort into getting rid of a 'mere human'," Inuyasha said, imitating his brother's monotone voice.

"Did you revoke his permission?" Kagome asked.

"I did not have time. He passed before I took any action," Myoga replied. Kagome started to breathe a little heavier. It felt like a weight was pressing on her chest. She curled her hands into fists on the couch cushion and tried to breathe evenly. A warm hand on her back made her jump, and suddenly she was able to breathe again. She looked to Inuyasha, who was watching her with a concerned expression on his face. As soon as she was breathing normally, he took his hand off her back and looked away.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Miss Kagome," Myoga said, "I wish I had made the connection earlier."

"Do you think Sesshomaru chose to sponsor me because of my father?" Kagome asked. She wasn't sure if she was asking Myoga or Inuyasha, but both replied.

"Don't worry about it, he's an ass."

"I'm sure he took the chance to help where he could."

Guess which one was Inuyasha. Oddly, his dismissal of Sesshomaru made Kagome feel a little better. She gave him a small smile. He sucked in a breath, then leaned forward and focused on Myoga again.

"Look, old man, I need a favor," he said.

"What exactly do you need?" Myoga asked.

"Kagome needs to get out of the Sector and back in before they send all the humans home," Inuyasha said. Myoga nodded.

"I believe I can arrange that quietly," he said.

"And I need to go with her," Inuyasha added. Kagome looked at him, incredulous.

"What? You can't go!" she exclaimed.

"No way in hell I'm letting you go alone. With this bastard spider after you, you won't last five minutes on your own outside a protective barrier."

"Need I remind you I am a priestess?" Kagome snapped.

"You can't do shit against somebody like him," Inuyasha said, "I got the drop on him once because he was distracted and then ran, we won't get that lucky again."

"You have no idea what I can do-" Kagome started to say, but Myoga stood, interrupting her.

"You mean to say you've seen him?" he asked them. Inuyasha stood, meeting his challenge.

"Yeah, so what?" Groaning, Kagome followed him to his feet.

"We don't know who he is," she said to Myoga, "That's why we need to leave the sector. My dad might have found some more information, but it's in a box at my house." Myoga looked to Inuyasha.

"I was human when I ran into him," Inuyasha said angrily, "I couldn't get a scent or anything. We need that box." Myoga hmm'd. Kagome turned to Inuyasha.

"And how exactly do you plan on getting out of the Sector looking like that? You can't exactly pass for human," she asked.

"I dunno," Inuyasha said, "But I'm sure as hell not letting you go out there alone."

"Please, you only care about me holding up my side of our deal," Kagome muttered.

"You're right, and you can't do that if you're dead!" Inuyasha replied. Myoga cleared his throat, then again a little louder when the two continued to argue.

"I may have a solution!" he eventually shouted over them. It took a second for them to quiet themselves, and Myoga continued.

"Miss Kagome," he said, "If you use a moderate dose of your purifying power on Inuyasha it will temporarily turn him into a human, similar to his transformation during nights of the new moon." Kagome looked at Inuyasha curiously, who had blanched. He was now scowling at Myoga, who had unintentionally revealed one of his secrets.

"If you do so, I can draw up the papers to let the both of you out of the Sector and back in. You'll have to convince the man at the station to let you go, but we aren't breaking word of Ina's passing for another couple days to the human population, so you'll be able to come back in. Understand?"

Kagome nodded, and Inuyasha crossed his arms in about as affirming a gesture as he was willing to give.

"Good. Let me get the papers. Kagome, please proceed with the purification," Myoga said. He walked to his desk and started rifling through one of the drawers. Kagome turned to face Inuyasha, who was still standing with his arms crossed.

"Is this okay with you?" she asked. Inuyasha grunted. She scowled at him

"Come on," she said, "Don't be a jerk." Inuyasha sighed, and uncrossed his arms.

"We gotta do what we gotta do. I don't have to like it," he said. Feeling a little better about what she was going to do, Kagome put her hands out. Hesitantly, Inuyasha let his hands slide into hers.

"Ready?" she asked. He nodded. Kagome closed her eyes and focused on the well of power inside her. Taking a deep breath, she brought it to the surface and channelled it into her hands. She heard Inuyasha gasp, then curse under his breath. The sound was distant, like she was hearing it underwater. Focusing again on her hands, she pushed her power outward, into Inuyasha's fingers. His presence, which she had been able to feel strongly, suddenly weakened and disappeared. She could still feel Myoga-his youki, she guessed-but Inuyasha's was gone. She realized that his claws had shrunk into nails, and were no longer pressing lightly against her palms. Opening her eyes, she released his hands and pulled back a little. Inuyasha looked down at his hands, and examined his now black hair. His eyes had reverted to a steely grey, and his fangs had disappeared as well. He looked exactly as he had the night Kagome met him.

"It worked?" he asked Kagome, eyebrows drawn up at the center. There was no growl to his voice. Instead, he seemed soft in some way. Kagome nodded. He fingered one now-human ear.

"I hate this," he muttered, though it had none of the bite she was expecting.

"I'm sorry," Kagome said, caught off guard by his changed attitude.

"It's okay," he said, "We gotta get that box, right?" He smiled at Kagome, and she felt her heart flutter a little. Stupid heart.

"Yeah," she replied, shrugging off the unwanted feeling. Myoga walked over to them now that the danger of Kagome's purifying powers had passed. He held out two pieces of paper.

"Show these to the train operator down at the station. Tell him I sent you personally," he said, handing a paper to each of them.

"Thank you," Kagome said, "Thank you so much."

"It's my pleasure, Lady Kagome," Myoga said. He bowed. Kagome's shoulders tensed, caught off guard by Myoga's sudden reverent tone. Inuyasha slipped a hand around Kagome's elbow and pulled her gently towards the elevator.

"Come on," he said. She nodded, and slowly turned to follow him to the elevator.

"Did you hear him call me Lady?" she asked Inuyasha in a hushed tone.

"That's just Myoga; ignore him" Inuyasha said. Kagome frowned. Somehow, she didn't think it was 'just Myoga'.

If Kagome thought Inuyasha's human side was just more gentle than his half demon one, she was mistaken. She thought he was going to punch the train operator at the station. He leaned in towards the booth and slammed his permission slip from Myoga on the glass.

"Listen up you fucking idiot," he said, "We have papers from a co-councilman of Youkai-Human relations. Does that mean anything to you?" The mousy operator pushed his glasses up his nose and gestured to the paper.

"Let me see," he said. Reluctantly, Inuyasha slipped the paper into the booth. The operator examined it, looking at the words through his glasses, then letting them slide down his nose and reading them over the frames.

"This is highly irregular," he said. Inuyasha pushed off the glass with a muttered curse and started pacing. Kagome stepped up to the window.

"Listen," she said, "I know it's not normal, but we do have permission. It's an urgent family matter, we'll only be gone for the night and then we're back first thing in the morning. Please?" She tilted her head down a degree and bit her lip, hoping the puppy dog eyes would win him over. The youkai twitched his whiskers and blinked.

"I suppose if you've got the permission it'll be okay," he said, "Go ahead and get on the car, I'll start her up." Kagome beamed at him while Inuyasha muttered 'finally' under his breath.

"Thank you so much, sir," she said, "We really appreciate this."

She grabbed Inuyasha and dragged him onto the train before he could say something rude and make the operator change his mind. They settled into two of the seats at the back. The train buzzed, and then started to move towards the mainland. Kagome watched out the back as the station disappeared. As she watched, a figure seemed to move in the darkness of the stairwell. A shiver went down her spine.

"What's wrong?" Inuyasha asked.

"It was him," she whispered, "The Spider King was back there."

To her surprise, Inuyasha took her hand in his and squeezed it.

"It'll be okay," he said, "I won't let anything happen to you." As much as she wanted to point out that he was human at the moment and couldn't do all that much to protect her, she felt too warmed by his words to do so. Instead she smiled and squeezed his hand in return.

"Kagome," Inuyasha whispered, shaking her awake. She grumbled, then opened her eyes. The train was slowing, coming to a stop in the station near her home. Other people had gotten on since, and the sudden appearance of people made Kagome tense up.

"We should get going soon," Inuyasha said, "I can feel it wearing off." It took Kagome a moment to remember that she had purified his demonic energy. Apparently he'd be back to silver hair and bad attitude in no time. Kagome stood, and the tug on her arm reminded her they were holding hands. Had they been holding hands the entire ride? She flushed a little, thinking of how that looked to the other passengers. Inuyasha stood as well, and as soon as the doors opened they were out into the human world again. Kagome had to pull Inuyasha along a little. He couldn't stop staring at the station, the size of it, and the sheer number of people.

"You can stare later," Kagome hissed. Snapping back to himself, Inuyasha pulled his hand from hers.

"Yeah, yeah," he said, and started power walking towards an exit. Outside of the train station, they found a secluded alley between two shops. Just in time too, because as soon as they were out of sight, Inuyasha started to change. Kagome felt his youki return first. It felt like a sudden pressure change in her ear, and then his presence was back in full force right beside her. He radiated power where before he'd been blank. She wondered if that was how her spiritual energy felt to demons, like a sun burning away in front of them. Then the physical changes happened. His hair started to turn silver at the roots, and it spread to the tips of his hair in only a few seconds. His claws and fangs grew, and he blinked, disoriented, as his eyes turned golden again. When it was done, he stood tensely in front of her. Kagome found that she had been holding her breath during the change.

"That was…" she started to say. Beautiful. It was beautiful to watch.

"Come on, let's get to your house," he grumbled, and grabbed her. He swung her onto his back, and scaled one of the buildings beside them to get a good view of the area. It was a good thing it was dark outside, otherwise they would have attracted far too much attention. Kagome pointed out the dark spot that was the shrine grounds, and Inuyasha started off that way over roofs and through alleys. He seemed to chart the course as he went, never faltering as he carried her towards home.

When they'd made it to the shrine, Kagome slid off Inuyasha's back and told him to wait by her window.

"I'll go in and tell my family I'm just home to pick up some more clothes. I can let you in the window, then we can get the box. We'll stay the night, and you'll sneak out the window again in the morning. Sound good?"

Inuyasha grunted, which Kagome took for a yes. She pointed out her window, then took off towards the kitchen door.

"Mama? Grandpa?" she called as she entered.

"Kagome?" she heard her mom call. After a couple minutes, her family appeared in the living room doorway, shocked to see her. They had obviously been woken up, all still wearing their pajamas and yawning. Kagome grinned, suddenly overwhelmed by seeing them after having been away for a month. Squealing, she pulled them into a big hug, then gave each a second individual embrace.

"What are you doing home?" her mom asked.

"Did they kick you out?" Souta asked. Kagome put her hands on her hips and answered that no, she had not been kicked out. She fed them her story about needing more clothes, and mentioned she just wanted to see her family who she missed like crazy, and they easily believed the lie.

"Have you had dinner, dear? Can I get you any tea? My goodness, it's the middle of the night," her mom gushed, along with about a million other questions.

"No, mama, I'm fine. I'd actually really like to get some sleep," Kagome said. Her mom smiled and cupped her face, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Mo-om," Kagome whined at the show of affection.

"Kago-ome," her mom mimicked, then, "Go get some sleep dear, I'll have your favorites for breakfast in the morning." Kagome smiled and dashed up the stairs to her room. She closed her door carefully, then went over to the window. She opened it, then leaned out and looked for Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha?" she whispered. He dropped down from the roof, startling her. She squeaked a little, then shook her finger at him.

"Don't do that!" she whispered. Inuyasha just smirked and slid into her room. She shut the window as quietly as she could, then turned to see the half demon just standing in the middle of her room and staring around him.

"What?" she asked quietly, trying not to alert her family to his presence. It was strange to see him in her room. He was so not normal, that to see him next to all her normal childhood possessions suddenly felt absurd. Like she was in a strange dream but hadn't realized it yet.

"Are all human rooms like this?" Inuyasha asked. He walked over to her desk and looked at her archery trophies from middle school.

"Not all, but a lot," Kagome replied. He looked back to her, grinning.

"I didn't know you liked pink so much," he said, "Kinda girly." He meant her walls, which were a pretty rose pink. Kagome scowled.

"Shut up. I chose the color when I was six," she said. She got down on her knees and reached far under her bed, feeling for her father's box. Instead, her hands came into contact with something furry. After a startled squeak, she realized what it was. She wrapped a hand around the chubby body and pulled Buyo, the cat, out from beneath her bed. He meowed in protest, but then relaxed and even started to purr as she scratched his head.

"Hey fat cat," she said. She looked up to see Inuyasha crinkling his nose.

"What?" she asked. At that moment, Buyo saw Inuyasha. He suddenly bristled, hissing at the dog demon.

"Shut up, whiskers," Inuyasha muttered, crossing his arms. Buyo ran to Kagome's door, and she let him out before he started scratching and attracted the attention of her family. As he sauntered out into the hallway, he looked back at Inuyasha with a swish of his tail, and Kagome could have sworn she saw him glare at the demon. She closed the door quietly, then went back to the bed and resumed her search for the box.

"Shoulda known you were a cat person," Inuyasha grumbled, still standing in the middle of the room.

"You know," Kagome said, "You can sit down." Inuyasha looked around for a place to sit, like the desk chair or the bed. Oddly, he settled on the floor, and plonked down where he stood.

"Ah! Yes!" Kagome celebrated quietly as she found the box. She pulled it out, then turned to Inuyasha and sat cross-legged on the rug across from him. She placed the box between them.

"This is it," she said, "I was only able to get it open a little at the hinges because I don't have the key-" Inuyasha picked up the box and slipped his claws into the opening where the hinges were. Then he gave a tug, and the box split open, the lock broken. Kagome blinked.

"Or there's that," she said. Inuyasha, looking a little too pleased with himself, handed her the bottom of the box.

"Here," he said. Kagome took the box gingerly, nervous to see what was inside. When she looked down, she saw a stack of papers with a rubber band around them. She picked the papers up, and pulled at the rubber band. It had become brittle, and snapped in her hands. She picked up the first paper, which was a photo. She knew it well, it was a picture of her as a baby that her mother had framed in their living room. Inuyasha leaned forward, peering at it.

"What's that?" he asked.

" _That_ ," Kagome said, "Is me. I didn't know my dad carried this with him." She put the picture on the ground. Next in the stack were some notes written down in her dad's scrawling hand. She looked over them, but didn't see anything new until the last page. Narrowing her eyes as she tried to decipher the writing, she read out loud:

"Where did Spider come from? Girl may know. Why does he kill? Why stop?" She looked up at Inuyasha. He was watching her read, his brow furrowed.

"What?" she asked. He shook his head.

"I don't know what that means," he replied. Kagome put the notebook paper on the ground. She paused at the next item. It was an envelope. There was no address, just her mom's name written in pen. She picked up the envelope and made to open it, then stopped.

"Well?" Inuyasha prompted. She lowered the letter, taking her fingers away from the sealed edge.

"I shouldn't open this," she said, "It's for my mom." She expected Inuyasha to argue, but instead he just nodded.

"You should give it to her," he said. Kagome put the envelope aside. Then she was holding the last item in the stack. It was a folded piece of paper. Old paper. Matching the book Mr. Ooturo had given her. She tried to keep her hands steady as she unfolded the page. She didn't want to damage it at all. Inuyasha leaned in, watching as she unfolded it and revealed the images on the inside.

There were three drawings on the inside. One was a man with a spider on his back, one was a figure in a baboon headed cloak, and one was a malformed creature. It was basically humanoid, but had extra limbs and bulging flesh where it shouldn't be. It looked like a combination of creatures, like they'd been patchworked together.

"Which one is him?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha reached out and traced an arrow on the page. It pointed from the spider backed man to the malformed creature, and then another arrow pointed to the baboon man.

"I think they all are," he said. Kagome looked up to him, and they met eyes.

"You mean he's...a shapeshifter?" she asked. Inuyasha's mouth pressed into a thin line.

"He kills youkai and steals their powers. Maybe he doesn't just take their abilities. Maybe he takes their form too."

"He could be anyone," Kagome said, horrified at all the possibilities that opened up. Inuyasha nodded.

"Explains how he gets away with murder so easily. And how he could sneak into the Sector without anyone knowing," Inuyasha added.

"And we have no way to catch him…" Kagome said.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: No Turning Back**

Kagome woke up in the morning to her grandpa yelling. She groaned, and tried to hide further in her pillow, but he was very insistently yelling about sneaking a boy into her room.

Her eyes flew open and she sat up. Her grandpa stood in her doorway, holding a kendo shinai and pointing furiously at Inuyasha with it. Inuyasha, to his credit, was just standing there and covering his ears instead of yelling back-or worse, throwing a punch. Kagome scrambled out of bed and put herself between Inuyasha and her grandpa.

"Grandpa! Stop yelling! Calm down," she said. He shook his shinai.

"We raised you better than this, Kagome Higurashi!" he shouted.

"Wait, better than what? What do you think is going on?" Kagome asked.

"What is he, your new boyfriend?" her grandpa shouted. Then her mother-thank god for her mother-appeared in the doorway.

"Father! Enough, go downstairs and eat your breakfast. You're scaring Souta," she said. Somehow she managed to take control of the room without raising her voice beyond a normal speaking level. Grandpa tried to protest, but the look on his daughter's face was enough to banish him downstairs. Kagome looked at Inuyasha, who was still standing with his ears covered and a distinct deer-in-headlights expression. Then it occurred to her that maybe he wasn't covering his ears because of the yelling, but because the dog ears on top of his head were decidedly not human. She turned back to her mother.

"Mom, he's not my boyfriend!" she said before her mom could start scolding her for something she didn't do. Her mother just smiled, and walked past her to Inuyasha.

"Nice to meet you. I am Kagome's mother, but you can call me Hana. What's your name?" she asked. Kagome watched, mystified, as her mother treated Inuyasha just like any other friend she brought home after school to hang out with.

"I-Inuyasha," Inuyasha stuttered in response. He still held his hands over his ears, although it wasn't particularly helpful in disguising his half-demon nature. His claws, eyes, and hair were in full view, and when he talked you could see the tips of his fangs beyond his lips. Gently, Mama Higurashi took his hands and pulled them from his ears. Kagome could see how Inuyasha flinched when she caught sight of the fuzzy, triangular ears poking from his hair. She hoped her mom wouldn't do anything to-

Her mom squealed, putting her hands to either side of her face. Inuyasha jumped back, horrified.

"They're so cute!" her mom exclaimed, perhaps louder than Kagome had ever seen her. Inuyasha's eyes flicked between Kagome and her mother, unsure of what to do. Mama Higurashi stepped beside Inuyasha and put an arm around his shoulders, herding him towards the door of Kagome's room.

"There's breakfast ready downstairs, go ahead and get something to eat. Kagome and I will be down in a minute, but make yourself comfortable, dear," she said. Inuyasha started nodding at her words, and didn't stop until he was out the door and halfway down the steps. Mama Higurashi hung back at Kagome's door, and when Inuyasha was clearly able to walk on his own, she turned back to her daughter. Kagome smiled at her, hoping she'd be as easy as she was to Inuyasha. No such luck. Her mom crossed her arms and gave Kagome _the look_. You know the one.

Kagome decided it was better to talk before her mom had to ask any questions.

"I...um...mom, it's complicated," she managed to get out. Her mom raised an eyebrow.

"He slept on the floor, by the way. He's not my boyfriend. I tried to give him a blanket, but he said he didn't want one. He's weird like that. I mean, he's a half demon, but that's not what makes him weird. Or maybe it is, I don't know. I…" she was digging herself into a ditch pretty quickly.

"You're not home to get more clothes," her mom said. Kagome nodded.

"I...mom, things are really complicated right now," she said. And then the truth just started coming of her. Everything about her new friends, and about why she wanted to go to the Sector. How Ina was killed, how they think they knew who did it. How she thought her dad-

"Okay, honey, it's okay," her mom said. Kagome realized she was crying. When did she start crying? That wasn't something she did. Her mom, softened by the tears, walked over and guided her to the bed. They sat down next to each other, her mother's arm around her shoulder.

"I'm sorry mom, I didn't want to make you worry about all of this," Kagome sobbed. Her mom pulled back and cupped her face with both hands.

"Listen to me, Kagome. There is _nothing_ that will worry me more than you keeping things from me. I'm just happy you told me what happened. I'm relieved you got out early, they haven't even told us anything about this poor Ina yet," she said. She hugged Kagome to her chest.

"But mom, I didn't want to tell you because I don't want you to worry when we go back," Kagome said, her voice slightly muffled in her mom's shirt. Her mom pulled back again, a concerned frown marring her features.

"Going back?" she asked. Kagome nodded. Her mom shook her head.

"Kagome, you aren't going back there! Not after you find out someone is after you!" she wasn't exactly yelling, but there was a tone of panic in her voice that put Kagome on edge. Her mom wasn't a panicky person.

"Mom. I have to go back. This guy has hurt so many people, and if we can find a way-"

"No. No, you can tell the police about this, this isn't something for a sixteen year old girl to get mixed up in," her mom said.

"Mom-"

"And your friend, he can stay here. We won't tell anyone. It's too dangerous back there anyway, he's better off with us," Mama Higurashi said. Kagome could see the cogs turning in her mom's brain. She was calculating the changes in grocery costs, how Inuyasha could fit in at the shrine, if he would sleep in Souta's or Grandpa's room, whether they could send him to school or if it would be too obvious he wasn't human. Kagome, instead of the anger she expected, felt touched. And she didn't want to argue with her mom, not right now. Not when it might be the last time she'd see her.

"Okay," she lied, "You're right, I'll stay." Her mom pulled her into another hug, then released her.

"Let's go eat, we can talk about all this later," she said. Kagome nodded, and followed her downstairs.

It was strange to see Inuyasha sitting at the breakfast table with her grandpa and brother. Souta was pestering Inuyasha with questions and stuffing his own face with pancakes. Inuyasha got a half answer in every few questions, but then her brother was onto the next thought, excited to finally meet a demon- "even if he was just half". Inuyasha was eating slowly, under the glare of her grandpa, but he brightened considerably when Kagome and her Mom entered the room. He looked up at them with the strongest 'save me' look Kagome had ever seen. And her mom, heeding his plea, scolded grumpy Grandpa and pestering Souta. She set another place at the table, and then they were eating breakfast like some normal family. Kagome sat next to Inuyasha, their elbows nearly touching at the now more crowded table. They both ate in silence, relieved to let Kagome's family chatter on. Mama Higurashi didn't mention anything about staying home, and Kagome was grateful to escape that conversation for the moment. Inuyasha kept sending her furtive glances, doubtless wondering when they would make their escape. After breakfast, she thought, wishing he had some sort of mind reading powers. After breakfast her Grandpa would walk the shrine, her brother would go get ready for school, and her mom would wash dishes. Then they could sneak out her window and be off to the train station before anyone knew.

After breakfast, Kagome dragged Inuyasha upstairs on the pretense of finding him some new clothes. When they got to her room, he stopped her.

"What did your mom mean, we were staying here?" he asked. Kagome frowned.

"You could hear that?" she asked. Inuyasha pointed to his ears.

"Yes, yes I could. What are you thinking, crazy wench?" he demanded. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Relax, dog boy," she said, "We're sneaking out now to go to the train station. I'll zap you and we'll be back in the Sector before my family can do anything about it. Understand?"

"You lied to your mom?" Inuyasha asked, like the concept had never occurred to him before.

"Yes! Now let's go!" Kagome hissed.

They were out the window in less than a minute. Inuyasha had to be more careful in his route during the day, it was too easy to spot them if he scaled buildings in broad daylight. Instead, he ran through alleys and up fire escapes, avoiding any major foot traffic. It took about ten minutes to get to the station. Kagome figured her mom was finding out that they weren't in the house about then, and it would only take her a little bit longer to realize they weren't at the shrine at all. She zapped Inuyasha behind the train station, then they ran to the ticket booth and presented their passes. The man behind the glass didn't ask any questions and just gave them their tickets with a dull expression on his face. Still, Kagome didn't breathe until they were on the train and moving. She and Inuyasha sat next to each other, their backs to the window.

"...I like your mom. She's nice," Inuyasha said.

"...Yeah," Kagome replied.

"You should've stayed," Inuyasha said. Kagome shook her head.

"I can't. Not while he's out there," she replied. Inuyasha shifted in his seat, his knee brushing against hers accidentally. She felt herself shiver at the contact, but tried to ignore it. He seemed unaffected.

"He...he's hurt too many people," she continued, "You, me, my family, all those demons he's killed, who didn't do anything wrong. Until we kill the demon who murdered my father, I can't leave it alone."

Inuyasha shifted his knee again, pressing it against hers. This time it was clearly intentional. The light touch seemed to be his way of comforting her in the crowded train. Then he moved away again. They stayed that way, silent, until they pulled into the station at the Youkai Sector. The other passengers had filtered out, and it was just the two of them. When the train slowed to a stop, Inuyasha stood and walked towards the door without looking back. Sighing, Kagome stood and followed him. She didn't like the way her heart hoped he would slow down, maybe brush her elbow as they walked side by side. That wasn't what she was here for.

Human students lazed about in the dorm, bored but too anxious to do anything. Inuyasha had snuck Kagome back in the window, and she was searching the floors for her friends. She suspected Inuyasha was sitting on the roof of the dorm rather than returning home like she told him to. He'd tried to argue with her, and when she shut the window on his complaints the stubborn look on his face said he wasn't going anywhere.

She found Sango and Rokuro with Karin in her room. Sango, upon catching sight of Kagome in the doorway, jumped up to greet her.

"You got out?" she asked. Kagome nodded, glad that Myoga had sent her friends word of their plan. She didn't want to scare them again if she could help it. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the missing page with the illustrations of the Spider King. Sango took it from her and unfolded it, showing it to Rokuro and Karin.

"He's a shapeshifter," Kagome explained.

"So cool…" Karin muttered. Both Sango and Rokuro gave her strange looks.

"I mean, cool in a majorly bad way," she amended. Kagome sat down at Karin's desk chair, and relayed what Myoga had told her about the Spider King.

"He just changed into someone else and disappeared after he attacked the Poison Masters," she finished. Sango looked up from the illustrations, brow furrowing.

"What is it?" Kagome asked. Sango leaned over to Karin's desk and pulled out her copy of the textbook for Understanding the Youkai Sector. She flipped to a page in the middle of the book, then turned it around for the others to see.

"The Poison Master clan came to the Sector in the first few days of its opening. Three brothers, with all their servants. Two of the brothers have died since they got here."

"The Youkai Killer?" Kagome asked. Sango shook her head.

"An experiment gone wrong and and a duel over a potential mate. Mr. Ooturo talked about how their deaths led to tighter restrictions on dueling and weapons in the class you missed."

"What about the last brother?" Rokuro asked.

"Still alive, and three times as rich as he would've been. He contributed nearly half of the funds for the Education Program. More importantly, he was there when the Spider King was supposed to be killed." Sango replied.

"And he could give us a first hand account," Rokuro added. Sango nodded.

"What are we waiting for?" Karin said, standing, "Let's go!"

"But the guards-" Karin walked over to her window and opened it.

"I've got a first floor room, remember?" she said. Before any of them could reply, she climbed out the window. A flash of silver flew into view, and suddenly Inuyasha was standing beside her. He looked into the window, glaring at Kagome.

"Listen, wench," he said, "Next time I got something to say, don't just slam the window and walk away." Karin peered at him, glee on her face.

"This is the guy?" she asked Kagome. Kagome nodded.

"He's hot!" Karin exclaimed. She reached up and tweaked one of his ears.

"And the ears are so cute!" Inuyasha, growling a little, swatted her hand away.

"Ey, keep your hands to yourself!" he snapped. Karin grinned.

"Sorry," she said, "I'm Karin! Nice to finally meet you. I've been feeling a little left out." Inuyasha glanced at her briefly, then focused on Kagome again.

"Look," he said, "We need to get this guy before he comes after you again. Sitting around on our asses ain't gonna do that." Kagome stood and walked over to the window.

"Can you get us to the Poison Master clan house?" she asked.

Inuyasha grumbled about it, but he carried them all over the campus wall one by one. Then, complaining under his breath, he led them on foot down alleys until they came to the house of the Poison Master clan. It was a relatively easy trek, considering that most Youkai were staying indoors. They only had to avoid a few clan patrols-the Sector version of beat cops-who weren't powerful enough to sense Kagome's muffled spiritual powers.

"I don't like this," Inuyasha said to Kagome. They stood across the street from the house.

"Why not?" Kagome asked, annoyed.

"Me either," Sango cut in, "Kagome should've stayed behind." Inuyasha nodded in agreement, annoying Kagome further.

"Why? I'm the one the Spider King is after, and he has the information we need!"

"You're too vulnerable out here," Sango said, "We should go back."

"What?" Karin said, "We got all the way out here and we're just gonna turn around."

"Yes," Inuyasha said, grabbing Kagome's arm and making to pull her back the way they came. She tugged her arm out of his grasp and scowled.

"Karin and I are going in. You guys can leave if you want to," she snapped. She knew it was a childish thing to say, but dammit she wasn't turning around!

"How about Karin and I go, and you three stay here," Rokuro suggested. Kagome glared at him, and he wavered a little under her gaze.

"I-I mean," he said, "It's a good compromise, right? We'll ask all the questions and report back with what we know. In the meantime, Sango and Inuyasha can protect you out here, where you can make a quick getaway." He smiled amiably. Still unhappy, Kagome nodded. She could see the reason in his words, even if she didn't like it.

"Great!" Karin said, linking her arm with Rokuro's.

"See you guys in a bit!" she said. Then she practically dragged him across the street. Kagome watched, tense, as she knocked on the door.

"Calm down," Inuyasha whispered to her.

"What?" she asked.

"Your spiritual energy is going crazy," he said. Kagome took a deep breath, closing her eyes and reaching inward. She tried to still the flickering power inside her, soothing it like an angry animal and-

Her breath caught as a familiar presence appeared at the periphery of her senses. She opened her eyes, and saw that the door to the Poison Master house had opened. Karin and Rokuro were talking to a tall man with pale skin and dark hair. Reaching out, Kagome grasped Inuyasha's arm.

"Ow, let go!" he said.

"That's him," Kagome hissed.

"What?" Sango asked. Kagome pointed at the man.

"That's _him_. He's the Spider King," she frantically whispered. She watched, horrified, as Karin and Rokuro disappeared into the house. They had no idea what they were walking in to. As soon as the door closed, Kagome started to run across the street. Inuyasha caught up to her in a couple paces, forcing her to stop.

"Hell no!" he growled, "There's no way you're going in there!" Kagome flung her arm out towards the house.

"He's gonna kill them!" she said, "We have to go!"

"I-shit," Inuyasha said. He picked Kagome up and sprang across the street, landing in the bushes in front of the house. The branches and leaves scratched Kagome's skin, but she didn't move a muscle as a patrol walked by. They were close-too close-and she gave a quick prayer that they wouldn't notice her spiritual energy. Inuyasha wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer to his chest as if he could hide her aura with his own. His ears turned furiously, searching for any sound to suggest they would be caught. After a few minutes, he relaxed his hold. Still, Kagome was too nervous to move.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I shouldn't have run out in the street." Inuyasha grunted, not meeting her eyes.

"Sorry I grabbed you," he muttered. He didn't sound incredibly sorry, but it was the closest thing to an apology Kagome figured she'd get out of him. Seconds later, Sango found them. She crouched down in the bush next to Kagome.

"What's the plan?" She asked. Kagome and Inuyasha exchanged glances. They weren't ready for this. Sure, they knew they'd confront the Spider King eventually, but he was right in front of them, and he had two of their friends _in his house_. Inuyasha squared his jaw, glaring at the house.

"Let's go," he growled. Sango nodded.

"I'm with you," she said, pulling a small blade from her sleeve. Kagome's heart clenched, but she nodded as well.

Inuyasha kicked in the door. The large wooden door with big hinges and a sturdy lock. Kagome watched, astonished, as it flew into the room beyond and skidded across the floor.

"Stay behind me," Sango said to Kagome, then she and Inuyasha moved into the foyer. Several demons appeared immediately, all bearing the Poison Master crest. Inuyasha and Sango jumped into action. One of the demons threw a punch at Sango, but she ducked easily and jabbed at his armpit with a fist. He flinched away, curling around the hit. She hooked him behind the knee with a foot and he went down, hard. Where Sango was finesse, Inuyasha fought like an animal. He sunk his claws into one demon's leg, pulling him off his feet mercilessly. When two came at him simultaneously, he grabbed their heads and literally knocked them together. Kagome winced at the loud cracking sound that ensued. When the two fell to the ground, they didn't rise again.

"Come on!" Sango shouted as she skirted into the next room. Kagome followed her, avoiding the demons already on the ground. When she turned to see the room, Kagome gasped. Karin and Rokuro were slumped over on the wooden floor, unconscious. She ran to them, ignoring Sango's shout to stay back. With relief, she saw they were breathing, but in the next moment a deep dread filled her. She looked up to see the tall dark haired man standing over her. Naraku, the last Poison Master. The Spider King. Fearfully, she looked up at him. She was frozen-as frozen as she'd been when he showed up at her archery practice. He smiled at her, but it was far from a comforting sight.

"And I thought I'd have to go out there and get you," he said, "Kikyo." He reached down and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt, pulling her to her feet. Leaning down, he put his face very close to hers. Kagome tried to lean away, but he didn't let her.

"You're very clever, you always were. But bringing that mutt here? You wound me. I must return the favor," he said. He raised a hand, and Kagome saw a greenish mist starting to gather around it. She started struggling harder as he brought his hand towards her face. He twisted a stray lock of hair around his fingers, and a sickly smell rose to Kagome's nose as it melted away into nothing.

Suddenly he jerked back. Kagome opened her eyes to see Sango's knife sticking out of his hand. She'd thrown it from across the room and was shouting at the demon to let Kagome go. With a hiss, he dropped Kagome and pulled the little knife from his palm. Holding the blade up, he melted it with more of his dangerous mist. Kagome felt a hand on her arm. Sango yanked her away from the demon, and back towards the front door. Looking up, Kagome saw Inuyasha with Karin slung over one shoulder and Rokuro over the other. He skidded to a halt just short of the foyer doorway, when a group of menacing demons appeared in front of him.

"Change of plans!" he shouted, and darted towards the other door in the room. Kicking it open, he ran through. Sango and Kagome ran after him as fast as they could. They found themselves in a hallway with a staircase at the end. Inuyasha barreled down it, hardly slowed by the two humans hanging from his shoulders. Sango pushed Kagome ahead of her, forcing her to run between them.

They dashed up the stairs, one flight, two flights, then three. Kagome had never run so fast in her life. Her legs burned, and she could hardly think. She tripped over a step, and went down hard onto the edges of the stairs with a cry. Inuyasha whirled around, and made to get her, then realized he had no way to carry her and the other two.

"Keep going!" Sango shouted to him, pausing to help Kagome back to her feet. He hesitated, but then continued up the steps.

"Kagome, we gotta go," Sango said. Kagome nodded dumbly, and tried to force her shaking limbs to work. Her foot faltered again, and she slid down a step. A loud crash sounded from below them. Distracted, Kagome peered through the balusters. On the first floor, she could see a giant mass of flesh recovering from its collision with the wall. In the next second, the monstrous creature started to quickly slither up the steps.

"Oh god," she muttered. Sango, realizing she was useless at this point, just picked her up and started running. They caught up to Inuyasha at the top of the steps. He was throwing himself against a door, trying to get it open. Sango put Kagome down and went to help him. Kagome got shakily to her feet, looking over the banister to the approaching creature of flesh and smoke.

"Fuck!" Inuyasha shouted, digging his claws into the door in anger. Kagome glanced at Sango and Inuyasha. They needed more time. Holding tightly to the railing, she started to walk down the steps. She clenched a fist, willing her spiritual energy to life. Inuyasha paused, looked back to see her. He stepped away from the door to go to her, but Kagome turned to glare at him. Under her fierce gaze, he nodded, and she turned away to face the demon that was hurtling up the stairs towards them.

She closed her eyes, thinking back to that day during archery practice. She'd used her powers then. They'd flooded out of her in all directions, knocking dozens of demons out. If the Spider King was really a youkai who stole the powers of others, certainly she could put a dent in him. She felt the spiritual energy filling her, sliding through her veins. She kept pulling at it, forcing more and more into herself. Then she put her hands out. She could feel the Spider King's presence. He came closer and closer, a writhing mass of patchworked youki forced to the will of a single consciousness.

Just a little closer, Kagome thought. She grit her teeth at the effort to keep all the spiritual energy focused. Her entire body was tingling, and her arms started to feel very heavy.

There!

Kagome released her spiritual energy down the stairs, right towards the Spider King. The wave of pink light collided with his youki, and they sprung off of each other like oil and water. Then her energy pushed forward again, eating into his presence. A shriek sounded through the stairwell, and the creature before her started to rapidly retreat. Her spiritual energy, imbued with her determination, followed him. A loud crack behind her told Kagome that Sango and Inuyasha had finally gotten the door open. Someone-Sango-grabbed her from behind and pulled her out onto the flat roof of the building. It was a greenhouse, filled with all manner of demonic plants for mixing the toxins Poison Masters were so famous for. Kagome's head started to get fuzzy, and her legs collapsed beneath her. Sango kept her from falling to the ground, but was struggling to lift her limp body. Kagome heard the sound of breaking glass, and then a wave of sharp pains, like pinpricks, washed over her. Something roared, and dry crackling heat filled the air. The roof shook, Sango held Kagome tightly to her chest, and then there was just darkness.

With a gasp, Kagome sat up out of the darkness. Wildly, she looked at her surroundings, and found herself in a familiar room. It was the room where Sesshomaru had housed her the night she and Inuyasha met. She threw off the blankets and forced herself out of bed, despite the protestations of her leg muscles. She was no longer wearing her normal clothes, but instead had an oversized Yukata tied loosely around her. Nearly tripping over the fabric, she grabbed up the skirts and held them as she ran to the door. She threw the door open and ran down the hall towards the front rooms of the house. Bursting into a sitting room, she stopped short. Her friends stared back at her. Sesshomaru stood in the center of the room, and Rokuro, Sango, and Karin were seated in chairs around the room. Inuyasha stood at the far end of the room, mid pace. Kagome dropped the skirt of the yukata, and arranged the front to be a little neater.

Then, no longer able to contain herself, she ran to Karin and Rokuro and swept them up in a tight hug.

"I'm so sorry," she said, "This is all my fault, we never should have sent you guys in there. It was dumb, and I'm so, so sorry!" She pulled away when Sesshomaru cleared his throat loudly.

"It _was_ dumb," he said. Suddenly Kagome understood he'd been in the middle of soundly scolding them. Karin pulled her down into a large chair, sharing the oversized cushion with her. She grasped Kagome's hands with her own, and it was at least some small comfort after having seen her unconscious and helpless.

"What were you thinking?" Sesshomaru asked coldly, staring down at Kagome. She bit her lip, not having any justifiable answer ready.

"Leave her alone, it's not just her fault" Inuyasha said, irritated. Sesshomaru turned to him.

"You're right. I knew you were an idiot, brother, but I thought you at least had some sense of self preservation. Turns out you jump at the chance to be a fool," Sesshomaru replied. Inuyasha scoffed.

"Yeah yeah, talk it up. Who decided to bring her to the Sector in the first place? Myoga told us you knew about her dad," Inuyasha said. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, but did not reply. He focused back on the humans in the room.

"I've informed the school of your whereabouts. Considering their ineptitude in your guardianship, I've decided you will stay here until it is time to return to your families. I've sent for your belongings. Do not try to leave this house," he said. He turned with a swish of his silk robes, and made to leave.

"You aren't going to do anything about the Spider King?" Kagome blurted out. Sesshomaru paused, and looked back over his shoulder.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he replied. He exited, leaving Kagome's question hanging. She looked at Inuyasha.

"That's bull. He's really not going to do anything? We just found out who the Youkai Killer is!" Kagome asked. Inuyasha growled.

"Asshole," he muttered.

"We can tell the police when we get out," Rokuro suggested.

"What about Inuyasha?" Karin pointed out, "What happens if people find out he's a half demon living in the Sector?"

"Heh, I'll be fine," Inuyasha said, "But if we tell the cops I won't get the chance to take the bastard down myself."

"Are you kidding? Did you see what he could do?" Kagome said. Inuyasha grinned.

"I saw that you zapped him pretty good. He's weak now, and it'd be the perfect time to attack. By the time you tell the cops and they get their shit together, he'll be back to full strength."

"And who knows who he'll be?" Sango added quietly. Ah, there was that. He could turn into anybody, disappear into the crowd and assume the identity of any demon in the Sector.

"Then it's settled," Inuyasha said, "We take him down."

"How exactly are we going to do that? Sesshomaru won't let us leave this house, and then we'll be shipped off to the mainland." Kagome asked. There was a moment of silence between them.

"We'll figure something out," Sango said, her tone gentle.

"I'm more worried about how we defeat the Spider King," Rokuro said. Inuyasha flexed his claws.

"I can take him," he said. Karin giggled, and Inuyasha shot her a glare.

"Oh, you're not joking?" she asked. Kagome fought back a smile. Sometimes she really loved Karin.

"She's right," Sango said, "It'll take all of us. I need my weapons from campus, and Rokuro…" She trailed off, looking to him for confirmation. Rokuro nodded.

"I can help in other ways," he said, "Put me against a crowd of bad guys and I'll do some serious damage." Kagome looked between Rokuro and Sango. She hadn't realized Rokuro had told her about his Kaazana.

"If we can cause a big enough disruption to get you close, do you think you could purify him?" Sango asked Kagome. Kagome raised her hand to touch the jewel pouch.

"Maybe," she said, "But it took a lot out of me just to scare him off. I don't have nearly enough training for this."

"You can do it," Inuyasha said. Kagome looked to him, surprised. He watched her resolutely.

"You can do it," he repeated, "I'll make sure you get an opening." She gave him a small smile. Beside Kagome, Karin stood and clapped her hands together once.

"Then it's up to me to make sure we can get out of the house. After all, I won't be much good in a fight. Let me see what I can do!"

She practically skipped out of the room towards where Sesshomaru had disappeared to.

"What is she going to do?" Inuyasha asked.

"With her, who knows?" Rokuro replied.

Kagome sat back in the chair, taking a deep breath. She closed her eyes, looking inward to find the source of her spiritual power. She had to look harder than usual, finding the well of energy largely depleted by her stunt in the Poison Master house. But it was there, slowly replenishing itself. Something twinged in Kagome's head, a presence on the edge of her senses. She opened her eyes, sitting up in the chair.

"What's wrong?" Sango asked.

"Nothing...It's nothing," Kagome replied. No one believed her, but they didn't press further. Kagome stood.

"Could I get some food?" she asked Inuyasha. He nodded.

"Follow me," he said. Kagome looked to Sango and Rokuro, but they shook their heads. They'd eaten while she was asleep. Smiling at them, Kagome followed Inuyasha into the hall and towards what she hoped was a well stocked kitchen.

Karin found Sesshomaru giving instructions to some demons on where to put the her and her friends' belongings. She walked up to him confidently, hands clasped together behind her back, watching as the demons followed his orders as quickly as they could.

"Can I help you?" Sesshomaru asked her, mildly irritated.

"No," Karin said. He started to walk towards his study, and Karin trailed behind him like a lost duckling. He turned, looking down at her warily. She smiled brightly at him. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, tensing a little.

"What?" Karin asked.

"Are you sure I can't help you?" he asked. Karin shrugged.

"I'm just bored," she said.

"You may help yourself to anything here. There is an ample library," Sesshomaru suggested.

"Can you show me?" Karin asked. Stiffly, Sesshomaru nodded.

"Great!" Karin said. She waited for him to move, and followed quietly behind when he led the way. Sesshomaru pursed his lips. She was all too familiar, he'd noticed it from the moment he got a good look at her. This was a day he's hoped would never come.

"I'm sorry," Sango said to Rokuro, "I shouldn't have suggested you could use your wind tunnel without asking you first." Rokuro shrugged, holding his gloved hand up.

"It's okay, really," he said. He looked at Sango, who was watching him with a guilty look on her face.

"I mean it," he said, "Besides, I always swore I would use this thing to kill the demon that cursed my family. It's why I came to the Sector. I think that I'll get that chance very soon."

"You found out where he was?" Sango asked. Rokuro smiled, and pulled the page of illustrations from his pocket. He opened it and tapped the baboon cloaked figure. Sango took the paper, reexamining the drawing.

"You think the one who cursed your family is the Spider King?" she asked. Rokuro nodded.

"The timeline fits. The Spider King was active around the same time my first ancestor was cursed. And the baboon cloak? Too much of a coincidence. Anyway, we'll find out when Kagome defeats him." Sango handed him the paper back.

" _If_ Kagome defeats him," she replied, "I didn't want to say it in front of the others, but...this is a long shot. He's a centuries old demon with the power of all the youkai he's killed. We're a group of teenagers. If it weren't for Sesshomaru and his secret dragon, we wouldn't have gotten out alive the last time." Rokuro shifted onto the couch she was sitting on.

"Hey," he said, "Don't think about that."

"How can I not?" Sango asked. Rokuro resisted the urge to take her hand. It was rare that she was this open around him, and he didn't want to scare her off. So he kept his hands to himself and tried to find the right words.

"Sango...you are the single strongest person I've ever met. And not just because you can kick some major demon ass. I know you'll fight harder than anyone to get Kagome close enough to do what she needs to. With you on our side, we can't lose," he said. It was a pretty speech, and he meant every word. He only hoped that she believed him. He felt a grin break over his face when she quirked up the corners of her lips.

"Thank you," she said. Rokuro felt his heart do a flip flop. Damn, he was done for.

Kagome walked around the giant kitchen with wide eyes. It could've been in a five star restaurant, it was so nice. Obviously Sesshomaru would have this type of kitchen, he was bound to have a whole team of chefs to make food for him. Inuyasha stood awkwardly in the center of it all, pointing out the walk in fridge, the freezer, the pantry, etc. After a prolonged pause to take it all in, Kagome started to search the fridge for eggs and bacon. She was in the mood for some serious breakfast food. As she fished around for a good pan and some butter, she expected Inuyasha to leave her to her cooking. Instead he hung around, finding a stool in the pantry and settling down to watch her. She was far too happy about his presence for her own liking, and mentally scolded herself as she started to heat the butter in the pan.

"Want any?" she asked as she portioned out the eggs and bacon. Inuyasha hesitated, but nodded.

"If you're making it anyway…" he mumbled.

"Okay," Kagome replied. It was an oddly mundane moment, even as the threat of the Spider King hung over them. It was like Inuyasha was just another friend Kagome was hanging out with for the day. Or a guy she was making breakfast for. She felt herself flush a little and banished the thought. As if. She had more important things to worry about, anyway.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve: Rallying Cry**

Sesshomaru immediately regretted telling Karin she could ask him a personal question. It was a moment of weakness, one he would not repeat again once he got her to _shut up_. She did not ask one question, she asked many, and so rapidly he did not have time to answer any of them.

"-ever accidentally scratched yourself with your claws? I think I would, although maybe if you're born with them it's different. Why don't you have ears like Inuyasha. Not that I don't like your ears, but I wasn't expecting them to look the way they do. And are you wearing makeup or are the red stripes just a part of your skin? Ooh! Inuyasha said you could turn into a giant dog! What kind of dog? A Shiba? Or a husky? Or like...a poodle? That would be funny. Except if it's true, then it's not funny…actually it still is, nevermind. Do you-"

"Enough, Rin!" Sesshomaru shouted, whirling to face her. She stopped short, a shocked expression on her face. Oh dear. Was she going to cry? Sesshomaru hated it when women cried, especially human women. Then he realized what he'd just called her. He cleared his throat, trying to regain some of his precious composure.

"I'm sorry, Miss Karin, I did not mean to address you-"

"Oh, it's okay!" Karin said, "You can call me Rin if you want, I've never had a nickname before." Sesshomaru fought the expressions that threatened to cross his face. Confusion, curiosity, and perhaps a little anger. He had to put a stop to this, and put some distance between himself and this strange human. When Rin died, he had promised himself he'd never interfere with the lives of her reincarnations. Living isolated in the Sector used to make that easy, but it was just his luck that she'd be interested in attending school with demons. Damn woman never changed, always doing exactly the opposite of what he wanted her to. He forced himself to turn and continue towards the library. He would simply show her there, then leave. He had plenty to do anyway.

"Can I ask one more question?" Rin-no, _Karin_ asked.

"Yes," Sesshomaru growled out. Karin was unperturbed by the gravelly tone, and asked her question anyway.

"Why won't you do anything about the Spider King?"

Of course that's what she wanted to know.

"As I told Kagome, I know nothing about it," he replied. He could practically see Karin rolling her eyes and putting her curled fists on her hips, even as he looked steadily ahead of him.

"We all know you were lying about that. What's the real reason?" When he didn't answer, she continued in a sweeter tone.

"Come on, I'm literally never going to see you again after this week. Why can't you tell me? You won't let us do anything anyway, so what does it matter?"

The words 'never going to see you again' echoed in Sesshomaru's head a few times. Some part of him, the sentimental part that he only let out in times of dire weakness, answered her.

"Peace in the Sector is tantamount to our survival. I will already have to make great compromises to restore that peace after your friends' actions yesterday," he said.

"Like what?" Sesshomaru sighed at Karin's continued questioning. Somehow she was as she always had been. Relentless, and utterly unfazed by his cold treatment.

"Like giving Naraku quite a lot of money and political power. An unprovoked attack on the last youkai of the Poison Master clan cannot be taken lightly," he said.

"But he's not the last youkai of the Poison Master clan, he's the Spider King, and the Youkai Killer, and he murdered Kagome's dad, and-wait, I forgot to ask this earlier: Why did you ask Mr. Myoga to revoke Mr. Higurashi's permission to enter the Sector?" Sesshomaru growled. Myoga had some explaining to do.

"He was looking into my brother's secrets," Sesshomaru said, "He could not be allowed to continue to do so. I don't know why that attracted the attention of Naraku, but it did. It cannot be helped." Sesshomaru shouldn't have let Inuyasha come out of hiding in the first place. He thought it'd been long enough, that Inuyasha could pass for a full blooded demon in a world where hanyous were thought extinct. But his fool of a brother drew someone's attention through his reckless actions. When demons started dying, Sesshomaru got the truth out of him and forced him to hide again.

Sesshomaru heard Karin stop walking behind him, and he slowed. When she did not try to catch up, he stopped and turned to look at her.

"But you tried to help by sponsoring Kagome. Why can't you help now?" Sesshomaru blinked, taken aback by her observation. Yes, through some sympathy for the Higurashi family he had chosen to sponsor Kagome. But it was simply to repay the wrong the Sector had once done them in the father's death. He owed the girl nothing now that the education program was doomed.

"You know," Karin said, "Kagome thinks that the Spider King-Naraku-was the one who injured Kikyo. She says that he shapeshifted to look like Inuyasha, and made Kikyo think she'd been betrayed." She stepped toward Sesshomaru, peering at him with those large, questioning eyes. He found, embarrassed, he could not meet her gaze.

"That means nothing to me," Sesshomaru lied, and she saw through him immediately.

"It means Naraku won't just let Kagome go, or Inuyasha," Karin said. She shivered a little.

"He's obsessed," she added, "Wouldn't stop talking about Kikyo and a 'filthy mutt' reappearing after so many years."

"You want me to battle him," Sesshomaru said. Karin stepped closer, looking up at him.

"Will you?" she asked. Sesshomaru considered. Those in charge of the Floating City had learned long ago peace was more important than anything in the Sector. The death of any demon posed a threat to their entire species, no matter their power or skill. Once, he and the other major clan leaders had come together and made the decision to open the Sector to human investigators in pursuit of that peace. They were united against a common enemy then, the mysterious Youkai Killer that no one seemed to have any information about. Had he known that very enemy was sitting right next to him when they made that decision…

Any retaliation against Naraku would only cause bloodshed. But now that Naraku was aware of Inuyasha and Kagome, would he incite bloodshed anyway? Which path would lead to the survival of demonkind?

"If you can't fight him, would you at least let us?" Karin asked.

Curtly, Sesshomaru nodded.

Karin burst into the kitchen while Kagome and Inuyasha were eating their eggs and bacon. She skidded over to Kagome on the tile floor and threw her arms around her.

"What?" Kagome asked, mouth full of eggs and cheese. Karin pulled away, revealing her beaming face.

"We're good to go!" she said. Inuyasha coughed on a piece of bacon.

"What?" he said, "Fluffy agreed?" Karin nodded.

"It took some convincing, but I got him to agree! He says he can't fight with us, too political, but he'll let us go on our own. Well, you guys. He made me promise to stay out of it." Inuyasha, still coughing a little, hit at his chest with a fist. When his throat cleared, he muttered:

"Figures he'd do it for you…" But his words were lost beneath Kagome's excited response to the news.

"Karin, you're a miracle worker!" she exclaimed, jumping from her stool and dumping the rest of her food. Inuyasha barely had time to shove his last forkful of eggs into his mouth before she stole his plate and tossed it in the sink as well.

"Geez, woman!" he snapped through a mouthful of food.

"Let's _go_!" she replied, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him off the stool.

"Hang on, let me go change clothes!" Kagome called to her friends. They had found the open air courtyard at the center of the house, perfect for practicing for the upcoming fight. According to Sesshomaru, Naraku had not been seen in the past twenty four hours. That probably meant he was hiding away in the Poison Master house regaining his strength. They needed to attack before he got the chance to fully recuperate. Of course, Kagome couldn't very well fight in an oversized yukata, so she ran back inside to put on something more appropriate. As she climbed the stairs to her room, she started to feel that twinge again. She'd shaken it off earlier, thinking it was because she was weakened and hungry. But here it was, back again.

As she moved up the stairs, the odd feeling grew stronger. It was a pull, drawing her towards something very important. She reached her door, but paused with her hand on the door knob. She could spare a few minutes, right? Letting go of the door, she started to walk down the hallway, following the strange pull. It led her around a corner, and to a wooden door. She tried the handle, but it was locked. Disappointed, she tried knocking. To her surprise, the locking mechanism released with a clunk, but the door didn't open. Carefully, she grasped the handle and turned it, pushing the door inward. No one stood on the other side. Instead, it opened into a steep spiral staircase.

Kagome followed the pull forward, up the stairs. Her shuffling feet and trailing yukata stirred up dust that had settled on the steps, and she coughed, raising the silk sleeve to cover her mouth and nose.

"Hello?" she called, the sound muffled. Above her, she could hear someone shift. Something fell and rolled across the floor.

"Are you okay?" she called, lowering the sleeve. She picked up the skirt of the yukata and started to climb the stairs quicker. The closer she got to the room above, the stronger the pull felt on her core. She felt her heart start to beat faster, and a deep urgency flooded into her.

"Hello?" she called again. Whoever it was shifted again. Then she was at the top of the steps and in the small room beyond.

Kagome forgot how to breathe for a second. Standing across the room from her was a woman, wearing a white yukata similar to the one she was. The woman had long black hair, longer than hers, and porcelain skin. Her eyes were cold grey, and when she stared at Kagome she gave off the eerie impression of someone who was no longer living. But the worst part, the worst part was how familiar she looked. She and Kagome could've been twins, their faces were so similar.

"Kikyo…" Kagome whispered, barely believing what she saw.

"I am she," Kikyo said.

Kagome glanced around the room. Like the stairs, it was covered in dust. It looked like no one lived there, despite the woman that was currently staring at her clearly occupying the space.

"How...I mean, you're…" Kagome nearly squeaked when Kikyo started to move towards her. She looked like a ghost, and not the friendly kind.

"I did not imagine I would ever see this day," Kikyo said as she drew closer. Kagome swallowed, suddenly very nervous. She tried to turn and run back down the stairs, but whatever had pulled her here prevented her from doing so. She was sure she could physically do it, but mentally she was unable.

"How is this possible?" Kagome asked, "I'm supposed to be your reincarnation. You're supposed to be dead."

"Both of these things are true," Kikyo replied. She stopped a few feet away from Kagome.

"Are you a ghost?" Kagome shook her head.

"I am a nearly empty shell," she said, "Holding onto a fragment of a soul I should no longer bear." She reached into her sleeve and pulled something from it with long thin fingers. She put her hand out, palm up, and in the center sat what looked like pink glass. The fragment of the Shikon Jewel. Kagome gasped.

"You can have it," Kikyo said, "On one condition." Kagome looked back up to her dull eyes.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I am what remains of the Shikon Priestess. I have guarded this piece of the jewel for all these years, waiting for the time you would come to claim it. I give it to you to fulfill my duty. But I ask one thing of you in return." Kagome nodded, itching to take the jewel fragment.

"Kill Inuyasha," Kikyo said. Kagome stepped back.

"What? What are you talking about?" she asked. Kikyo narrowed her eyes.

"He betrayed us," she said, "And his brother split our soul to release him from the spell I cast. Inuyasha must die for what he has done to us." Kagome stared at her, wide eyed, trying to comprehend what she was hearing.

"He...he hasn't done anything to me," she countered. If anything, he'd saved her multiple times. She was pretty sure he didn't deserve to die for anything. Then something clicked in her head. Kikyo didn't know. She didn't know that Naraku was the one who-

"Take the jewel fragment," Kikyo said, "Then you will understand." Kagome shook her head.

"It wasn't him, Kikyo! Inuyasha didn't kill you. It was an evil demon who tricked you both," Kagome said quickly. At her words, Kikyo's face contorted. Her lip curled, and her brow fell low over her eyes.

"He has deceived you, then. He betrayed my kindness, forsook my love, and as if that wasn't enough, he has held me prisoner for all these years. Take the jewel, then you will understand that he is a monster who needs to die for what he did to me." Kagome took another step back.

"I...I don't know how you got here, but I'm sure there's a good reason Inuyasha wanted you to stay here," she said. She couldn't really think of one at the moment, but there had to be a reason. Kagome's expression suddenly changed again, shifting from anger to anguish.

"Please," she nearly cried, "I need you to understand!" She thrust her hand out again, offering the jewel.

Kagome heard the door at the bottom of the steps open again, and someone running up them. Inuyasha's voice filtered up, calling her name. Kikyo stepped towards her.

"Please," she whispered, as if she was in agony. Biting her lip, Kagome reached out and grabbed the jewel. She felt her fingers brush Kikyo's stone cold hand, and then her world was thrown into a spinning chaos.

 _Someone's screaming_ , Kagome thought. She realized with a jolt that it was her, the sound was coming from her own throat. Why was she screaming? She felt something brush against her soul, an unfamiliar presence. And yet, not so unfamiliar. She reached out to it, and as she did, something slid into place within her. Something she'd always been missing.

Anger filled her. Despair. Hatred. Hatred for a very specific person that had once betrayed her for power.

Kikyo fell to the ground in front of her, but by the time her clothes touched the floor, her body had crumbled into dust and bones. Kagome stood alone, her fingers holding onto the fragment of the sacred jewel. Kikyo was right, now she understood. She'd been missing a part of her soul, for perhaps her entire life. Someone had stolen it, used it to reanimate Kikyo's dead body, and release Inuyasha from her arrow's hold.

She felt violated. Putting her arms around herself, she curled inwards as if she could cradle her newly returned soul. It sat apart from the rest of her, darkened by years of imprisonment. By Inuyasha.

The hanyou burst into the room behind her, and Kagome whirled to meet him, anger in her face. He quickly looked from her to the robe on the floor, and the dust and bones.

"What did you do to her?" he shouted at Kagome.

"What did _I_ do?" Kagome yelled back, "I should be asking what you did!"

"Kagome, you don't know what-" She stepped forward, cutting him off.

"You kept her as a prisoner," she hissed, "You stole her away and wouldn't let her go. Do you know what you did to us? To me? And for what? This?" She shook the fragment of the jewel in his face. As his eyes focused on it, a confused expression blossomed on Inuyasha's face. Kagome snatched it away, tucking into the pouch around her neck.

"Listen, wench, it's not like I brought her back, that was all Sesshomaru," Inuyasha said, when he regained his words. Kagome wrapped her arms around herself again.

"I…" Inuyasha faltered as he continued, "We came to the Sector and...I didn't know what to-"

"Stay away from me," Kagome whispered. Inuyasha reached out with one hand to touch her arm, but she flung herself away.

"Stay away from me!" she shouted. Tears started streaming down her cheeks, and Inuyasha could do nothing but stand and watch as she screamed at him.

"We trusted you, and look what you did to us! We loved you! Just stay away, you monster!"

She ran towards the stairs, pushing past him and leaving him in the dusty room alone.

Kagome lay between Sango and Karin on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. Karin had her arms wrapped around Kagome's waist, and Sango was gently combing through Kagome's hair with her fingers. Kagome had stopped crying, but her eyes still stung and her cheeks felt stiff from the tears drying there.

"How is it even possible for a human to have been here all this time?" Karin asked.

"I don't know," Kagome said.

"She can't have been very human. At least, her body wasn't," Sango said, "She'd have died long ago."

Karin released her hold on Kagome's waist and propped herself up on an elbow.

"How are you feeling?" she asked. Kagome raised her hands to wipe her cheeks, then sat up and curled her arms around her knees.

"I can't explain it," she said, "It's like...like I've suddenly found this part of myself I never knew I had. And that part of me hates Inuyasha so much, and is so scared of him. But the rest of me doesn't feel the same way."

"How does the rest of you feel?" Karin pressed. Kagome buried her face in her arms, muffling her answer. Karin poked her in the leg.

"No fair, tell me for real," she chided. Kagome couldn't help but smile at that. Karin was either the best or the worst friend she'd ever had, and she wasn't sure which at the moment.

"I...kinda...like him," she admitted. Then that hatred flooded her again. She sighed, letting it wash over her and fade into the background.

"I should apologize to him," she said. Sango and Karin exchanged glances.

"Maybe wait awhile. See how you feel tomorrow," Karin suggested. Someone knocked on the door, making all three girls look up.

"I'll take care of it," Sango muttered. She stood and walked over to the door. Kagome caught a glimpse of Rokuro beyond. He exchanged a few quick words with Sango, then she followed him into the hallway, closing the door behind her.

"Oh!" Karin said, "Did I tell you Sesshomaru gave me a nickname?" Kagome smiled weakly, and took the bait.

"Yeah? How did that happen?" she asked. Karin launched into the story, with plenty of vivid commentary added. Kagome appreciated the attempt to distract her, but zoned out while Karin was talking, allowing her mind to wander.

Sango glared at Inuyasha. He pretended to ignore it, but started to squirm uncomfortably under her gaze.

"Okay, tell us what happened," Rokuro said, trying to help him out.

"Feh," Inuyasha said, "None of your business." Sango narrowed her eyes. She walked up to him and bent forward at the hips, bringing her face very close to his. Inuyasha leaned back in his chair, eyes widening in surprise at her sudden closeness. He went a little cross-eyed trying to focus on her, but Sango didn't back off.

"We're supposed to go fight the Spider King tomorrow. We can't do that if Kagome refuses to be in the same room as you. That makes it my business. Now _talk_ ," she said. Inuyasha nodded nervously, and after lingering a second longer, Sango stood up again and took a step back. After a hesitant start, Inuyasha started to talk.

"The first thing I remember after Kikyo pinned me to the tree was waking up to her face. I thought that she had a change of heart, felt bad or some shit, and decided to let me go. But she didn't smell like herself. She smelled like bones. Like she was dead. That's when I learned what Sesshomaru had done. He needed someone to release me from the tree so he could bring me to the Sector. Something about familial duty. He hired this crazy old demon hag to bring Kikyo back to life. But it didn't work like they expected. She wasn't...wasn't herself. Not her full self. And she thought that I was the one who injured her. After she released me, we brought her here."

"And you just kept her in a dusty room for centuries?" Rokuro asked. He wanted to be understanding, especially with Sango so angry, but Inuyasha wasn't making it easy. Inuyasha shook his head.

"No, it wasn't like that! I tried-I really tried to get her to forgive me. But she wanted nothing to do with me. It was ten years before I realized she wasn't aging. She wasn't who she was before. And then..." he trailed off, dropping his head into his hands.

"And then what?" Sango spat.

"And then I tried to make her happier. I tried to take her out to do things-she didn't smell human so people didn't question it. She could've been any demon. But then demons started dying, and Sesshomaru found out, and he told me I wasn't allowed to talk to her anymore."

"Wait, the Youkai Killer started killing right after you brought Kikyo outside in the Sector?" Rokuro said. Inuyasha nodded.

"If Naraku saw Kikyo and was obsessed with her, he'd kill people to find out where she was," Rokuro said to Sango.

"And when he saw Kagome…" Sango added. Rokuro nodded. Inuyasha slumped down even further.

"And Kagome's dad must have connected them. Kikyo must be the girl he was talking about in his notes," Rokuro said. A new voice joined the conversation.

"But he never got to talk to her, despite searching." Sango and Rokuro turned to see Sesshomaru standing behind them. He was staring with narrowed eyes at Inuyasha. Inuyasha snapped his head up.

"What do you want, asshole?" he snapped at Sesshomaru.

"Once again, you act like a fool and expect others to forgive you," Sesshomaru sneered. Inuyasha jumped to his feet.

"Oh yeah? What the fuck is it to you? Why did you even bring her back in the first place? I know you hate me, you could've just left me bound to that tree," Inuyasha shouted. Sango grabbed Rokuro's arm and pulled him out of the way as Sesshomaru stalked up to his brother.

"You listen to me, _brother_ ," Sesshomaru said, "I saved you from being picked apart by humans as you slept on that tree. I stooped so low as to save a hanyou, and you should be grateful I revived your bitch to release you."

"Take that back," Inuyasha growled.

"A true demon would not be so broken up over some fragment of a human girl that never truly felt for him," Sesshomaru said. With a shout, Inuyasha struck out at Sesshomaru with his claws. Sesshomaru blocked the frantic blow easily, and landed a punch in Inuyasha's stomach. Inuyasha bent over double, all his air pushed from him.

"If you can't even scratch me, how do you expect to defeat Naraku?" Sesshomaru asked. Inuyasha pushed himself to his feet, readying his claws.

"Fuck you," he spat. He ran at Sesshomaru again, feinting right then striking left. His claws sunk into Sesshomaru's shoulder, drawing blood. With a roar, Sesshomaru threw Inuyasha away from him. He crashed into a wall and staggered back to his feet with a laugh.

"How's that for a scratch?" he said. Sesshomaru growled.

"Be careful what you say," he warned.

"Or what?" Inuyasha replied. Sesshomaru's growl intensified, and he bent into a crouch.

"Stop!" Sango yelled, running into the middle of the room.

"Get outta the way, Sango!" Inuyasha shouted.

"No. Stop it, both of you!" she replied.

"What's going on?" Karin asked, entering behind Sesshomaru. At the sound of her voice, Sesshomaru looked around frantically.

"Gee, Fluffy," Inuyasha called, "I thought you'd be over Rin after all these years." Sesshomaru flung himself forward, skirting around Sango easily and heading straight for Inuyasha. Inuyasha jumped forward as well, and the two of them locked claws, evenly matched and neither willing to give ground.

"You know nothing about Rin."

"You're right, I only know what Jakken told me. But I do know you, and it must kill you to know she's standing right there. Of course, she's too young for you."

"Shut up, whelp," Sesshomaru warned.

"But she always was too young for you. Tell me, is that why you never laid a hand on her? Or is because she had 'filthy human' blood like your hanyou brother?" Sesshomaru roared and pulled his claws back, then started to swipe at Inuyasha back and forth in quick succession.

Inuyasha laughed, dancing around his blows easily.

"You're out of practice. Back in the day you'd take me down in a single punch," he said.

"Enough!" a new voice shouted, followed by a pulse of spiritual energy. Kagome stood in the doorway next to Karin, an arm around her shoulders. She glared at the two dog demons, cheeks flushed and eyes glistening.

"That's enough," she said, "we have more important things to worry about than some idiotic sibling rivalry." Sesshomaru raised a clawed hand to smooth his hair, backing off from Inuyasha at her words. He did not enjoy being chastised by a human teenager. His eyes fell on Karin, and he looked away quickly, to ashamed to meet her eyes.

"Tomorrow is the fight with Naraku, before he regains his power," Kagome said, "After that we'll leave the Sector and never return. Don't worry, Inuyasha, I'll hold up my side of the deal this time. You'd better hold up yours. Now, everyone, prepare yourselves as best you can."

She pulled her arm from around Karin, and looked to Sango and Rokuro.

"I need help training," she simply said. Sango nodded, and followed her out of the room. After a look back, Rokuro did the same. Inuyasha, suddenly finding himself alone with Sesshomaru and Karin, decided to make a quick exit and find a roof to brood on.

"What was he talking about?" Karin asked quietly. For the first time, she didn't seem overly eager to know the answer. Sesshomaru tried to think of a lie, but the thought of keeping the truth from her made him flinch. He didn't dare meet her eyes, or step closer to her. After she'd heard the truth she would probably never wish to see him again. At least then he will have accomplished his goal of pushing her away.

"Rin was a human I knew a long time ago," he said, "I met her as a child. She had been attacked by wolves, and was dying. I kept her from that fate, and she decided she wanted to follow me. As she grew up, she developed romantic feelings for me that I did not return. She grew old and died, unmarried."

"Did not or could not?" Karin asked. Sesshomaru, curious, looked up and met her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"You said you did not return her feelings. That's not what it seemed like to me," Karin said, "With the way you were fighting Inuyasha over it, seems like you had some feelings for her." Sesshomaru pursed his lips.

"It doesn't matter," he said.

"It does to me," Karin replied, softly. She looked at him with sad eyes. He looked down, unable to hold her gaze again.

"You will return to the mainland with the other humans, understand?" he said. Karin nodded.

"I understand," she said. Then, before Sesshomaru knew quite what she was doing, she walked forward and wrapped her arms around him. He froze, not that he was ever really thawed, and held his arms up to either side. Then the hug was over, and she was running off to find Kagome, Rokuro, and Sango. Sesshomaru sighed. She would be gone in a few days, then he could begin, again, the process of forgetting her.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen: Ending**

The streets were empty. Word of an attack on the Poison Master house had spread through the city, and not even patrols were roaming now. Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, and Rokuro stood in front of the Naraku's lair. It was still, and quiet, no sign of life inside. Perhaps they were wrong, perhaps he had fled to another location. Either way, they had to check and be sure.

Sango was now wearing traditional taijiya armor: black leather and hard plates over top. She carried a variety of weapons, including a demon bone staff, a pair of knives, and a bow with a quiver of arrows. Kagome had been surprised when Sango appeared that morning in the outfit, and wished she had something more protective (and badass) than black leggings and a grey tunic. She supposed she should've worn traditional miko garb, but there wasn't exactly any handy in the middle of a youkai city.

Inuyasha was wearing a bright red haori and hakama. Kagome recognized them from her vision of Kikyo's past. They were, according to Inuyasha, made from the fur of the fire rat. As good as armor to a hanyou.

Thankfully, Rokuro had no special outfit either, and was just wearing a t-shirt and jeans. He was carrying a bag of small spiritual tools, however, which made Kagome feel even more naked without any weapon whatsoever. Of course, she _was_ the weapon, but that didn't make her feel better.

"Let's go," Kagome said.

The front door had been propped back up, but was still off its hinges. Rokuro pushed it lightly, and it fell inward, landing on the floor with a loud bang. When no one came running, they slowly walked into the entrance hall.

"Inuyasha?" Sango asked. His ears flicked back and forth, and he took in a deep breath.

"Upstairs," he said quietly.

Without warning, darkness filled the room. It was like someone turned out the lights, except there was no sunlight either. The sound of shuffling feet and shoutin demons surrounded them as guards flooded into the room.

"Hold on!" Rokuro shouted. Kagome heard him chant something beneath his breath, and the darkness cleared. Rokuro held a piece of white paper that burst into flame and crumbled away into ashes. They were now surrounded by big, burly demons.

Rokuro whispered something to Sango, who nodded. Then the demons attacked. Sango knocked away a couple of the demons with her staff, then started clearing a path towards the stairs.

"Come on guys!" She shouted to Inuyasha and Kagome. Inuyasha, jumping away from an opponent, picked Kagome up and leapt over the ring of demons towards Sango.

"What about Rokuro?" Kagome asked.

"He'll be fine," Sango replied, although she sent a look back as they ran up the stairs. Below them, Rokuro slipped a finger under his glove.

"Leave, now," he told the demons, "Or I will not spare you." None of them moved. Rokuro pulled the glove off, and the wind tunnel in his hand started to pull any loose thing-including demons-towards it. He held his hand up, and shouted over the gale, backing towards the stairs. Hopefully if he could put himself between the demons and his friends, he could buy them some time.

"Go while you can, leave your evil master or be sucked into the void!"

In the upstairs hall, they ran into another, smaller group of guards. Sango and Inuyasha leapt into the fray, taking them down quickly. Kagome reached out with her spiritual powers as they fought, looking for some sign of Naraku. She felt a heavy presence nearby, and put a hand on one of the doors to her right.

"Wait!" Inuyasha shouted. He flung himself at her, pulling her out of the way as the door exploded outward.

"Ask me if it's safe next time, idiot!" he yelled as they got to their feet

"Oh, gee, I'm fine too, Inuyasha," she snapped, "Let's just keep going." Sango flew through the doorway, taking out another demon that was waiting there.

"You guys go," she said, "I'm gonna go back and help Rokuro. We'll be there soon"

"What? What if there are more-" Inuyasha started to say.

"Got it!" Kagome yelled over him, and ran through the doorway. Inuyasha ran after her, more concerned with keeping her alive than yelling at Sango. Kagome ran, turning through rooms and halls on instinct. Inuyasha was on her heels, calling for her to wait. When she suddenly stopped, he crashed into her and threw them both to the floor.

"Ow," he grumbled, but Kagome didn't complain. Instead she just got to her feet and stood in front of a pair of double doors. Inuyasha's ears perked up, and he sniffed the air.

"That's…"

"Yeah," Kagome said. She steeled herself, then slowly reached out and placed her hands on the door handles. She glanced to Inuyasha, who nodded. She threw open the doors, revealing the room on the other side.

It was dark. The light in the hall was dim, and kagome could only see a couple feet of carpeted floor inside the room with the Spider King. She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but as she and Inuyasha peered into the darkness, it certainly wasn't complete silence and stillness.

"Hey, Naraku!" Inuyasha yelled beside her.

There was the sound of someone moving, and then a tentacle shot out from the darkness. Kagome barely had time to register it before Inuyasha pushed her out of the way and sliced the tentacle with his claws.

"Come out you coward!" Inuyasha called. From deep within the darkness a chilling laugh reverberated into the hall.

"Why don't you come in?" Naraku hissed. Inuyasha growled.

"Fine by me." Then he was gone.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled after him. Shit. That idiot! He was supposed to help her get close, not go after Naraku himself. Then again, was she really expecting anything else? Kagome scrambled to her feet and ran into the room after him.

As she ran through the doorway, the darkness melted away. Kagome had the sickening sensation of gravity switching directions, and then she was standing in a large room. It looked something like a laboratory, a giant concrete box, with alchemical and scientific equipment on tables all around. Then she saw Inuyasha. He was kneeling on the ground a few feet away, facing away from her.

"Inuyasha, are you-"

"I'm fine! Get down!" Without thinking twice, Kagome dropped into a crouch near one of the tables. She was just in time, because another tentacle flew past her as she moved. She looked behind her, and gasped, grabbing hold of the table's leg. Naraku, or what she assumed was Naraku, was climbing slowly down the far wall of the lab. He was not a human, but a mass of tentacles and spines with a human face.

"Priesstesss, welcome," he said, drawing out his s's. Inuyasha ran past her, jumping into the air and striking out at Naraku with his claws. A tentacle swung into him, but instead of being knocked aside, Inuyasha sunk his claws into the slimy-looking flesh. Bright green blood burst from the new wounds, showering Inuyasha's red clothes and silver hair. He landed, claws still in the flailing limb, and grabbed hold of it with both hands.

"Take this you slimy bastard!" he shouted, tearing the tentacle in half with his bare hands. Naraku screamed, and skittered down the wall towards Inuyasha.

"Yeah, come get me!" Inuyasha shouted. He took off, leading the monster away from Kagome. Naraku took the bait, completely turning his back on Kagome. Pressing her forehead against the table leg, she took a half second to be afraid. _You can do this_ , she thought to herself, _you can do this_. Then she reached within herself. She stood, spiritual power already pooling in her hands. She started walking towards Naraku, who was still distracted by Inuyasha. She raised her arms, taking comfort in the bright pink glow that flooded them. When she was ten feet away from Naraku, she let out a shout.

"Hey, Spider King!" she shouted. Naraku whirled to face her, and if monsters could be surprised she'd say he was.

"This is for my father!" she screamed, her voice breaking. She unleashed a whirlwind of spiritual power straight at Naraku. Like before, he reeled back, the pure energy biting into his physical form. This time, Kagome kept at it, forcing more and more at him. She found herself screaming at the effort. It was painful, more painful than anything she'd ever felt before. She held it for as long as she could before she could withstand no more. Her arms dropped to her side, and she stumbled back on shaky legs. Inuyasha appeared beside her.

"Is he…?" he asked. Kagome looked to Naraku. The giant mass was nowhere to be found.

"I think-" She saw something move behind one of the tables. Naraku, in humanoid form, rose to his feet. He was swaying back and forth, and leaned heavily on the table to support his weight, but he was standing. Long black hair nearly covered his face, and when he twisted, Kagome could see the spider mark on his back. Inuyasha bent his knees beside her, readying himself to attack.

Naraku laughed.

"That was impressive. You nearly got me Kikyo!" he said, "Really, I'm impressed. It took me a long time to amass all of that youki. Such a shame."

He raised his gaze to meet Kagome's and grinned. She shivered. All she wanted to do was turn and run. But she couldn't, not until this was finished. She searched inside herself again, seeking some power to throw at the weakened demon. With a jolt, she found nothing. No power, just an empty well. Panicked, she looked to Inuyasha.

"Well?" he asked. Kagome shook her head, unable to form the words. Inuyasha cracked his knuckles.

"Then it's my turn," he said. Naraku laughed again, and held out one of his forearms before him.

"That's the spirit," he said. He drew a sharp claw all the way down his forearm, spilling green blood onto the table and floor. Then he raised the arm in the air, and the blood flowed down his torso.

"Come to me my demons!" he shouted. The air around them pulsed. Kagome grabbed Inuyasha's arm. Something was coming towards them-lots of somethings. From out of nowhere, a wave of youki flew towards Naraku. He spread his arms out, taking it in. It seemed to wrap around him like, becoming cloth and then a set of feudal robes. His claws grew longer, as did his fangs and ears. His eyes glowed with raw power.

"I think a change of venue is in order," he hissed. Raising a hand, he snapped his fingers. The world shook, and then they were standing on the street of the Youkai Sector.

"Now," Naraku said, "I hate to tell you this, my dear, but you've fallen in with a bad crowd. I've half a mind to punish you...but that would be just selfish. I think it's best to end your miserable life and try again with the next reincarnation. One of these days your soul will come to its senses and choose me."

Inuyasha stepped in front of Kagome.

"Touch her and die," he growled.

"How sweet. Wanna play, puppy?" Naraku asked. Inuyasha scoffed, and ran towards him.

"Inuyasha, don't!" Kagome warned, but it was too late. Naraku was suddenly right in front of him, and caught him by the throat. Inuyasha scraped at Naraku's hands, but his claws didn't seem to do any damage at all.

An arrow flew out of nowhere, piercing Naraku's leg. He shouted in pain and dropped Inuyasha, who started to gasp for air and crawl away.

"No!" Naraku growled out, but as he reached out for Inuyasha a great wind seemed to pick the hanyou up and carry him away from danger. Kagome turned to see Sango and Rokuro-a little worse for wear, but certainly alive. Rokuro covered his wind tunnel just in time to reach out and catch Inuyasha. Inuyasha shook him off.

"I'm fine! I had it under control," he yelled.

"Sure, friend," Rokuro replied, patting him on the back. The three came forward to join Kagome in facing off against Naraku.

"I'm glad you're okay," Kagome said quietly to Sango. Sango smiled.

"Same," she said.

"Kagome, get some rest. See if you can get some more power ready to go," Rokuro said. Kagome nodded, backing up behind the other three.

Naraku reached down, pulling the arrow from his leg. He snapped it in one hand.

"This would be so much easier if you would just hand her over," he growled.

"Fat chance," Inuyasha answered.

"Have it your way," Naraku replied. Inuyasha ran back towards him, and an intricate dance of three on one began. Inuyasha ducked in and out of Naraku's range, attempting to slice at him with his claws any chance he got. Sango loosed arrow after arrow, if not injuring Naraku, at least doing something to distract him. Rokuro was chanting, something Mushin had taught him, and it seemed to be disorienting the demon further.

Naraku let out a roar, and spread his arms out. Green mist started to pour from his claws, pooling on the ground and spreading out towards Kagome's friends.

"Ah, shit!" Inuyasha shouted, covering his nose, "It's miasma!" He jumped out of range in a single bound. Even a half demon wouldn't last long against the poison. Sango quickly covered her nose and mouth with a filtering mask. She motioned to Rokuro to get back. He shook his head, covering his nose and mouth. Her movements became more frantic, pleading with him to move back. Instead, he pulled off his glove, and pointed his wind tunnel at the miasma. The green mist immediately started to pour into his hand, clearing from the street. Naraku, distracted by the great force, had to brace himself against the wind. Rokuro held the Kaazana open until all the miasma had been absorbed. He pulled the glove back on, then collapsed to the ground immediately.

"No!" Kagome shouted. She ran over to him and knelt down. His eyes were closed, but his face was scrunched up in pain and he was sweating profusely. She placed a hand on his head. He was burning up.

"You're gonna be okay," she muttered. She got to her feet, hooking her hands under his arms and trying to pull him out of the street. A pained shout caught her attention, and she looked up to see Naraku standing over Sango. Sango's leg was bent in a weird way, and she held her demon bone staff up as her only defense. Kagome opened her mouth to scream, when Inuyasha swooped in, grabbing the demon slayer. He landed next to Kagome, depositing Sango safely on the ground.

"What do we do?" Kagome asked.

"Take Sango's bow and arrow and start shooting," Inuyasha ordered. Kagome nodded, pulling the weapon from Sango's back. Sango protested weakly, but Kagome shushed her.

"Keep an eye on Rokuro," she said, then stood and ran back into battle. Inuyasha was dodging around Naraku, trying his best to avoid the demon's claws. Kagome drew an arrow and aimed for Naraku's chest. She'd never tried to hit a moving target before, and wanted to give herself the best chance of success. Taking a deep breath, she let the arrow fly. It passed by Naraku without grazing him. Letting out an angry shout, she picked up a second and tried again. This time it grazed his side, and caused enough pain to make him pause. Inuyasha took the opportunity to dash in and swipe with his claws. He just wasn't quite quick enough. Naraku grabbed him as he tried to leap away, pulling him to the ground roughly.

"Let him go!" Kagome yelled, drawing another arrow. Naraku picked Inuyasha up and held him up as a shield.

"Why, this is familiar, isn't it?" he said, "You about to shoot the man you love. This time, don't miss!"

"Shoot him, Kagome!" Inuyasha yelled. Naraku shushed him, putting a hand over his mouth.

"I wonder how long a half demon can breathe in poison without dying?" he wondered aloud. From down the street, someone called coldly to Naraku.

"I highly suggest you release him, Naraku." Kagome looked to Sesshomaru. He stood calmly in the street, holding his claws up and examining them carefully.

Naraku smiled.

"Now things are getting interesting. I thought you didn't like to get your hands bloody anymore, Sesshomaru. Something about peace above all?"

"Release my brother, you pretender," Sesshomaru replied.

"Gladly," Naraku replied, "One thing…" He drew one clawed hand back and thrust it forward into Inuyasha's back. Kagome screamed, matching Inuyasha's pained yell. Dark red blood started to flow down his back and pool on the ground. Naraku dropped him in the bloody puddle, and turned to Sesshomaru.

"I hope you're a greater challenge than your brother was," Naraku said, and flew at Sesshomaru. Kagome ran forward, falling to the ground next to Inuyasha and scraping her knees. He lay on his stomach, and she didn't want to turn him over and risk jostling his wound more. He coughed, and she realized he was still conscious.

"Jus' a scratch," he muttered. Kagome shook her head.

"No it's not, you idiot!" she said. Tears started to flow down her cheeks.

"Kagome," Inuyasha ground out, "You got shit to finish. You can't be crying over something so dumb right now." She wanted to hit him, but didn't. He was too injured for that.

"Shut up!" she said.

"Kagome, you have to go _now_ ," Inuyasha insisted. She bit her lip, and looked over to Sango and Rokuro. All her friends were down, injured by the same demon who'd killed her dad and so many other people. And she was sitting here crying about it. Sucking a breath, she nodded and wiped the tears from her face.

"I still hate you," she muttered. It was true. That part of her that Kikyo retained was flooding her with a sick satisfaction at the sight of Inuyasha's bloodied body. To her surprise, Inuyasha shook his head.

"You don't hate me," he said, "You hate _him_." He looked to where Naraku and his brother were fighting.

Inuyasha wasn't talking to Kagome at all, he was talking to Kikyo. It was no use, Kikyo's feelings remained the same. But Kagome was bolstered. Inuyasha was right, she did hate Naraku. She'd never hated anyone as much as she hated Naraku. She smoothed the long hairs out of Inuyasha's face, then leaned forward and kissed his temple lightly.

"I'll be back," she said, as if she were just going out to the store for some groceries. Then she stood, and turned to look for Naraku and Sesshomaru. The two were locked in battle, clashing together, then jumping back, then clashing again rapidly. Picking up Sango's bow and arrows, Kagome walked towards them. She drew an arrow, aimed, and fired, hitting Naraku square in the shoulder. He staggered back, giving Sesshomaru an opportunity to slice at his belly. Green blood spurted out, staining Naraku's robes. Hissing, Naraku swipe back at Sesshomaru and caught him across the face.

Kagome continued approaching the pair, firing another arrow that sliced past Naraku's arm. Naraku kicked out at Sesshomaru, forcing him to draw back. It gave Kagome the perfect opening. She went for another arrow, and came up cold. Sango's quiver was empty. In the second it took her to realize this, Naraku was in front of her. He grabbed her, lifting her by the arm until she was barely standing on the tips of her toes. Sesshomaru skidded to a halt in his latest attack, all to aware of Naraku's claws very close to Kagome's vulnerable human skin.

"So close at last," Naraku whispered into Kagome's ear. Her stomach writhed at his closeness, his utter wrongness. There was something so unnatural about him, so unlike Sesshomaru and Inuyasha and the rest of the demons she'd met. He was twisted in ways she didn't want to understand. Scowling, Kagome reached out and grabbed at the arrow still in his shoulder, pushing it deeper. Naraku yelled in pain, unable to act for a single moment. In that moment, Kagome called upon the meager spiritual energy that had returned to her, and slapped her hand on his chest, giving it everything she had.

Suddenly she wasn't on the street anymore. She wasn't being held up by Naraku, she was standing outside of a small cave under a hill. A strange sensation filled her, and she found herself moving forward. She looked down and saw she was wearing miko robes, like when she'd seen Kikyo's memories. Were these more memories from her past life?

She entered the small cave, and saw a man laying on a crude cushion. He was covered in bandages, and Kagome somehow knew he'd been severely burned. He was never going to walk again, let alone lead a normal life. _Onigumo_. The name floated into her head.

Then the vision shifted. Kagome was standing in a large cave. In front of her rose a great dragon demon, a shifting creature made from a multitude of demons. She looked down at herself, and discovered she was wearing armor. This wasn't Kikyo's life, this was another woman's. The dragon pounced at her, and she raised her sword. Pink light flashed, and her surroundings changed yet again. Kagome was standing in a black space, and she was herself again.

"Kagome." She turned to see Kikyo standing behind her.

"Hello again," Kagome said. Kikyo smiled, and it was beautiful. Kagome had only seen her angry or sad before, never peaceful. Now the woman radiated serenity and kindness. Was this the Kikyo Inuyasha had known?

"And goodbye," Kikyo said. Kagome frowned.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I have to go now. I pass the duty of guarding the Shikon Jewel onto you. You will do well, I think," Kikyo said. She sat down, and Kagome saw the bandaged form of Onigumo on the ground. Kikyo picked up a small bowl of water, and raised it to the man's lips for him to drink.

"I can't leave you here," Kagome said, "Not with him. He's Naraku." Kikyo nodded.

"Yes. And I am responsible for him. It is partially my fault he became a demon, after all."

"Became a demon? I don't understand," Kagome said. Kikyo put the bowl of water down and placed her hands on her knees.

"He lusted after me, but my heart belonged to another. I spurned him harshly, and when one day he disappeared I was too consumed with my love for Inuyasha to think of the consequences. He was a human who invited demons to devour his body in exchange for their power. This is how he became the Spider King, then Naraku, then finally the Youkai Killer. Now his obsession can be put to rest, the world can have peace, and the jewel can once again be whole." Kagome took in the information slowly, sadness etched in her face.

"It's not fair," she said, "You couldn't help it if you didn't like him back. It's not your fault he went and made a deal with demons, that was his decision." Kikyo stood again, taking Kagome's hands in her own. They were not cold like before, but warm and calloused by years of work.

"I should have seen through Onigumo's foul trick all those years ago. Please, tell Inuyasha that I'm sorry," she said. Kagome squeezed her hands.

"I don't want to leave you behind again," she said, "I just got you back." Kikyo pulled her into a hug, and whispered into her ear.

"I once let Naraku win because of fear. Don't let yourself do the same," she said. And she was right. Kagome knew it, even if she didn't like it. She pulled away from Kikyo, preparing herself for what she had to do.

"Thank you, Kikyo," she said. Kikyo bowed her head.

"Thank you, Kagome," she replied.

Kagome woke up laying in the street. Gasping for breath, she sat up and looked around her. Sesshomaru was crouched beside her, and helped her to her feet.

"Where did Naraku go?" Kagome asked.

"He disappeared when you touched him," Sesshomaru replied. Kagome pulled the jewel pouch from around her neck and opened it, not caring about the demons who could notice. She pulled out what was once the jewel and a fragment, but was now a whole, flawless gem.

"He's gone for good," she said. Sealed in the jewel with Kikyo. Then Kagome remembered Inuyasha's injury. Gasping, she put the jewel back in its pouch and ran over to him. He was unconscious, and his blood-too much blood-stained the street.

"No, no, no," Kagome said frantically, "Inuyasha come on! I don't hate you, I'm so sorry! I don't hate you!" Sesshomaru laid a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Help is on the way," he said calmly. Kagome was everything but calm. Tears streaked down her face, and she grabbed two fistfulls of Inuyasha's haori. Leaning over him, she rested her forehead on his back.

"Please be okay," she mumbled, "Please, please be okay."

Kagome returned home before Inuyasha woke up. He'd been taken to the Sector medical center, and was on a variety of medications-both traditional and modern. She'd wanted to stay with him, but Sesshomaru only let her visit for a little while each day. She hadn't gone home willingly either, he practically had to carry her on the train. She only cooperated when he promised to send her word of Inuyasha's condition the next week.

Kagome's family had been worried sick while she was gone. Apparently her mom called every authority she could think of until she got to Myoga, who guaranteed that Kagome was in the care of his most trusted sponsor. A little less trusted now that he let a bunch of teenagers take on an evil demon lord, but Myoga didn't know that at the time. When Kagome walked in the door, her mom clearly didn't know whether to ground her or throw a welcome home party. In the end, she did a little of both. She made Kagome stay in the house for a week...but baked all her favorite foods and even gave her a cake. Her mom was a bit of a nervous baker. Kagome wasn't complaining, she didn't feel like going anywhere anyway. She was just worried about her friends. She hadn't seen them since the battle. Karin was the only one on the train home.

True to his word, Sesshomaru sent Kagome a letter informing her of Inuyasha's condition. He had woken up-irritable and idiotic, apparently-and was recovering smoothly. And that was all the information included. Kagome knew it was silly, but she wished she knew if Inuyasha missed her. If Sesshomaru had told him she didn't want to leave.

A week after she got back, Kagome's mom knocked on her bedroom door.

"Come in," Kagome called. Her mom sidled into the room and closed the door behind her.

"How are you feeling?" she asked. Kagome shrugged. She could slowly feel her spiritual power returning to her, but she'd really done a number on it. She was surprised it was coming back at all. Somehow she thought of it as a living thing, and was worried she'd hurt it too much for it to return ever again. But it was coming back to her, just as steadily as her hopes of being a normal girl were disappearing. She still had the jewel. She hadn't gotten the chance to give it to Inuyasha before she left, and she wasn't sure she'd be able to in the future. Maybe she'd be stuck as the Shikon Priestess for the rest of her life, like Kikyo.

"There's some people here to see you," her mother said, "I told them you weren't up for visitors, but they insisted." Kagome frowned. She got up and followed her mother down the stairs. About halfway down, she recognized one of the voices. Running the rest of the way, she ran into the living room to find Sango, Rokuro, and Karin waiting for her. Sango was on crutches, and Rokuro still looked a little sickly, but they were alive and well.

"Oh my god!" Kagome shouted, and hugged each of them in succession. When greetings were exchanged and introductions to Kagome's mom made, they settled down in the living room to talk about what had happened.

"I'm so sorry this all happened. It's my fault you guys got hurt and I know you'll probably never forgive me, but I'm just glad to see you're okay," Kagome rambled. Rokuro waved a hand in the air.

"Meh, a little poison's no big deal. Besides, Kagome, you saved my life," he said. Kagome frowned. Rokuro held up his Kaazana hand, gloveless, and without the accompanying whirlwind.

"Naraku was the same demon who cursed my family. Now he's sealed away forever and the curse has been lifted," Rokuro said.

"And don't even think about feeling bad for me," Sango said, "That's the best training I've ever gotten and I intend to keep working at it until I don't get beat by some dumb spider guy with a god complex." Kagome looked to Karin, who shrugged.

"I was asleep the whole time," she said. Kagome frowned.

"Then who convinced Sesshomaru to come fight with us?" she asked. Karin just grinned. Kagome sighed.

"I can't believe it all really happened," she said, "The only thing that reminds me it isn't a dream is this." She held up the Shikon Jewel pouch.

"Speaking of, you should stop by Mushin's soon. We've got a better version in the works," Rokuro said. Kagome thanked him, and told him he didn't have to do that, but he shrugged off her words. They were friends, he told her, that's what friends to.

Shikon Priestess. That would be her life now, Kagome supposed. But it wasn't all bad. The three friends she had made, who told her they were determined to help her guard the jewel despite her protestations, they were the good part of that life. That day they sat in her living room rehashing the most dramatic parts of the fight with Naraku. Kagome found herself feeling content, even happy, for the first time since she'd been home. Yes, these people were the good parts of her new life, and she intended to keep them around.

 _And that's it. At least for now, I've left it open enough to write a sequel (haven't decided if I want to do that or not). Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think!_


End file.
